Point of View

The novel is written from Antara's first person point of view. By employing this vantage point, the author establishes an intimate relationship between her narrator and reader. Indeed, on the opening page of the novel, Antara seems to confess her truest feelings only to her audience, saying: "I would be lying if I said my mother's misery has never give me pleasure" (1). Within the first line of her narrative, Antara attempts gaining the reader's trust, convincing her listener that she is the honest one. As the novel unfolds, therefore, Antara continues claiming her own reliability, both in the context of her private narrative thoughts, and in interrogations with her mother. Antara insists upon her honesty, her goodness, and her victimization. The reader, therefore, learns to believe her, even pitying and empathizing with her as she reveals more and more dark information about her mother's cruelty...