James

James is the narrator of the story. He is a 16-year-old boy living in San Francisco with his mother. He is the youngest of four children. His siblings have all moved out of the house, and his father died of cancer years prior. James lies compulsively, and the contents of these lies are always quite morbid. For example, he may lie that his mother is very ill. James does not know why he lies, and this habit causes much tension between himself and his mother.

The narrative seems to imply that James’ habitual lies may be motivated in part but unresolved grief for his deceased father. James did not appear to have an especially close relationship with his father. After his father’s death, James did not appear to have many, if any, moments of sincere grief. James claims in narration that he does not miss his father...