Point of View

Girl in Translation stays in Kimberly Chang’s point of view throughout the entire novel. From the beginning of the novel, we know that Kim is now an adult. As such, many of the events that likely were confusing to her as a child are explained with the knowledge of an adult who now understands them. For example, when describing the racial demographics of her elementary school, Kim notes that “It was only later that I understood it in these terms” (58). This idea suggests that she is interpolating her child’s perspective with her adult knowledge.

Kim is a forthright, unsentimental narrator, unless she is describing Matt. She rarely imbues her thoughts with emotionalism. Instead, she describes her situation in straightforward terms. Indeed, this practicality in description mimics Kim’s attitude more generally; she is always practical about the goal of education. But Matt is...