Point of View

The novel is written in the third person and utilizes both the present tense and past tense in narration. The narration uses the present tense when referring to events of the main narrative, which occur in the present. The narration uses the past tense when referring to past events in the characters’ lives. The narrative’s perspective shifts between characters, but it is always limited to only one character’s perspective at a time. The main point-of-vie characters in the novel are Miriam, Ralph, and Sadie, as their storylines constitute the main focuses of the narrative. However, the perspective sometimes shifts to other characters, such as Matthew, in order to define their roles and personalities within the overall story.

The juxtapositions between character perspectives allow the novel to emphasize salient similarities and differences between the characters’ overall emotional journeys. Miriam, Ralph, and Sadie are all...