Point of View

For the most part, the narrative unfolds from a third person, past tense point of view – that is, as recounting events that happened, rather than events that ARE happening. The most significant aspect of this overall point of view is that it repeatedly shifts – from that of protagonist Jacob, to that of Jacob’s wife Julia, to that of their oldest son Sam, and at times to what amounts to what might be described as a journalistic point of view, objective reporting of big picture news. This is a clear contrast to the more intimate perspectives of Jacob and his family, with the repeated shifts between the more objective considerations of the former and the more subjective considerations providing effective narrative contrast and similarly contrasting thematic perspectives.

In terms of those thematic perspectives, the central theme that threads its way throughout the entire book, no...