Point of View

The novel is written in the third person point of view. The narrator follows two characters closely, first Henry Whittaker and then his daughter Alma Whittaker. The point of view also includes some authorial voice in which the author speaks directly to the reader and tips the reader off to important moments in time or to moments that will seem insignificant at first, but prove to be highly significant later in the novel.

The point of view of this novel works well with the plot. The point of view gives the novel something of a historical feel, like novels written in another generation for a more sophisticated audience. The point of view also allows the reader to understand when something of importance is happening, even if it seems innocuous. The point of view also allows the reader to understand Alma’s father, which in turn...