Point of View

In terms of narrative point of view, the story is told from the first-person perspective of narrator and protagonist Nicholas (Nick) Hall. Events, situations, and conversations are all portrayed as he experiences them and reacts to them, meaning that the actions and intentions of other characters are communicated through the filter of his perceptions and interpretations. This limited point of view brings the reader’s focus and intention tightly into, and onto, Nick’s story. A related point is that while there are occasional diversions into past tense (i.e. when Nick describes events, situations, and relationships that took place before the events of the main narrative line), for the most part, the story is told in present tense, which adds another layer of immediacy and connection to the reader’s engagement with Nick’s experiences.

In terms of stylistic point of view, the main...