How does the author use flashback in the novel, We Cast a Shadow?

Time progresses in a mostly chronological fashion in the novel, but the author makes use of several flashback, layering them in with the narrative present. The narrator often relays a flashbacks in the middle of another scene and are prompted by images or emotions. These serve as illustrations of the ways that memory and recall function in real life. But they also serve a dramatic purpose, effectively slowing down the action, increasing narrative stakes, or postponing resolution. The narrator also makes use of shorter jumps in time which often occur between chapters. Since the narrator does not explain the length of time that passes, the chapter breaks create a jumpy quality, one that mimics the narrator’s fretful and anxious psyche.