Point of View

The point of view of Christy is first person, protagonist, a traditional storytelling method that gives the story a sense of immediacy. The reader feels what the protagonist feels because they experience everything that the protagonist experiences as the story unfolds. The most interesting use of first person in this story is that the author is really telling not her story but the story of her mother and her time as a missionary volunteer teacher in the Great Smoky Mountains. Because she has heard the stories from her mother so often throughout her life, the author has internalized the stories and brings them to life through the first person character of Christy. Christy's youth, innocence, naivety, and enthusiasm are easily felt as she works through each obstacle throughout the story. Her first challenge is to find her way to Cutter Gap. She expected a welcoming committee...