Point of View

Feathers is written in first person narrative. Frannie, an eleven-year-old African American girl is the narrator. She tells the story of fear, bias and faith from the point of view of a young girl who has known tragedy and prejudice. Her older brother, Sean, is deaf. She describes how other kids are cruel or even afraid of him because he can't hear and communicates using sign language. She is protective of him and tries to shield him from hurt but he is willing to take the risk and try to be welcome in the hearing world.

Frannie is a practical girl. Her faith is not strong because she has known tragedy. Her mother lost an older sister as an infant before Frannie was born. Her mother also lost two more babies in miscarriage. When she becomes pregnant again, Frannie fears that her mother could die or...