Point of View

The novel is written in third person from the perspective of Elsa. She is a seven-year-old girl who does not have much in common with other children. Her differences give her a unique perspective. Some readers will not identify with Elsa because she is an atypical character.

The limited perspective means the reader does not know anything unless Elsa knows it. For example, Elsa knows only that she is afraid of the man she knows as The Monster. The reader doesn't know anything about his identity until Elsa learns about him. The perspective in this book is even more limited than is typical for this type of perspective. There are some things that Elsa knows that are not revealed to the reader. When she figures out that the apartment building is the castle from Granny's fairy tales, she reveals that she should have known what...