Point of View

Four Treasures of the Sky employs the first person point of view and is written in the present tense. The author structures several chapters in the first and second parts of the novel in the past tense, which enacts the protagonist’s experience of remembering past events. The first person narration is from the point of view of the novel’s heroine, Daiyu.

While Daiyu is only a young girl at the outset of the novel, the author develops her character as trustworthy by positioning her on an authentic search for her truest self. This quest for truth opens the audience to relating to her as a reliable narrator. However, the audience’s relationship to the heroine becomes more complicated as they begin to understand her as someone who is motivated by selfish intentions. The author is careful not to foist blame on Daiyu for...