Point of View

The novel is written in first-person from the limited perspective of Cowney Sequoyah, a Cherokee Indian who lives with his grandmother, Lishie, and who is trying to decide what to do with the rest of his life. Cowney is 19-years-old during the summer of these events. He is old enough to be carrying some major responsibilities but is still young enough to be idealistic and sometimes naive. The limited perspective means the reader knows only what Cowney knows, and there are only a few hints about events that will lead readers to make conclusions before Cowney. For example, a little girl goes missing from the resort where Cowney is working and Cowney realizes he is going to be blamed because he is an Indian and a friend has pointed suspicion in his direction. Cowney seems on the verge of getting away from the situation but...