Points of View

The book is written in the third person. The reader has author Kevin Boyle's viewpoints and perceptions seen through the eyes of Ossian Sweet and the others. The events, the fear, the violence are all portrayed in this way. The author's viewpoint comes through several times in the book regarding discrimination and the living conditions in the post-Civil War south and in 1920s Detroit.

The author allows the viewpoints of both sides to come through in the book. The fears of the Garland Avenue whites are expressed very clearly when they are confronted with a black family moving into the area. They are worried about their daughters being raped and they are worried about their property values. Their fears are fed by the Klan and others. Their mentality is revealed during the testimony when they lie under the coaching of certain police and the Waterworks Park...