Point of View

The majority of the narrative is told from the perspective of an omniscient narrator. The only exceptions to this assertion can be found in Chapters 18 and 22, which are partially narrated by Michael O'Casey/M.J. Striker. Also, there is a brief section in Chapter 28 in which the omniscient narrator addresses the reader directly: "She [Wanda] wouldn't want us to be intimidated [...]" (293). By employing the use of more than one narrative perspective, the narrative takes on a fragmented quality which some readers may find disconcerting. However, it can be said that this technique functions to literally "break" the narrative in the same way that Margaret's valuable figurines are broken.

The fragmentation that results from the author's use of multiple forms of narrative address lends itself well to the novel's overall motifs of destruction and reclamation. The narrative itself becomes an object which is cracked and then reassembled...