Point of View

This story is told from the third person point of view of an omniscient narrator. The narration focuses most closely on Reynie, the boy who acted as leader of the Mysterious Benedict Society. While the story could have been told from the first person point of view of Reynie, it would not have been as effective because the thoughts and emotions of other characters could not have been demonstrated. Also, if the novel were told from the first person point of view, any action that Reynie was not a part of —Kate’s spying on Mr. Curtain’s conversation with S.Q. and Martina, for instance — could have been included in the novel only if Kate were to have described the entire situation to him. This third person omniscient narration works well for the book as it allows the reader to focus on Reynie and...