Point of View

The use of point of view is one of the novel’s most distinctive and revealing formal choices. It is told entirely in the first person by Khaled, yet the novel is often more concerned with Hosam and Mustafa than with Khaled himself. This dynamic reflects Khaled’s identity as someone who exists largely in relation to others. He does not present himself as a central protagonist but as a witness, a narrator whose understanding of the world and of himself is filtered through his relationships. His narrative voice is reflective, cautious, and withholding, marked by a tendency to observe rather than to intervene.

This approach to point of view complements the novel’s broader portrayal of Khaled as an observer figure in both life and politics. His life is shaped by political events: the shooting at the embassy, the long years of exile, the...