Point of View

The story is told from the first person point of view of Karl Stern. Karl is a Jewish teenager who is living in Nazi Germany at the time of Hitler’s reign. Ironically, even though Karl is descended from Jewish ancestors, he and his family are not practicing Jews. This first person point of view is appropriate as it tells the story of Karl’s coming of age during this difficult time in his life and in his country’s history. Karl tells the story not only of his own developing maturity but his growing relationship with his father and the deterioration of life in Germany for the Jews.

Karl’s story is told in the past tense, as if he is looking back on the events of this part of his life. There are no flashbacks to the past and very little foreshadowing of...