What is the author's style in Children of the Mind by Orson Scott Card?

The novel is told from an omniscient third person narrative point of view, which enables Card to tell a story that literally spans light years. Given the variety and scope of the events he relates, the point of view he uses enables him to juggle multiple plot lines throughout the novel with a great deal of effectiveness. In fact, Card's ability to switch from one narrative line to the next enables him to keep his subplots from getting tangled which is admirable given that some characters cross from one subplot to the next. For instance, Miro stays with Old Valentine and petitions Ender for his help at her urging. However, he also plays a central role in Jane's initiative to find and communicate with the descoladores.

Third person, omniscient narration allows Card to present the events of the novel through the eyes of most of his characters, both major and minor. Consequently, not only are we privy to Wang-mu's most intimate thoughts about her role at Peter's side but Card also presents us with the inner workings of Admiral Lands' mind in order that we may understand the psychology of one who is fully capable of, and resolved to commit, xenocide. Not all writers juggle characters with the same ease Card does. Elsewhere he writes that he is very conscious that when adding characters to a novel, they increase the complexity of the work exponentially. By having so many different characters figure in the novel, he not only has to be able to make them think and speak differently, he has to be able to capture the dynamics of all the individual relationships the character has with all the other characters. Certainly a third person, omniscient point of view is best suited to this task.