Point of View

Most of the stories in Grand Union are told from third-person limited or third-person omniscient perspectives. The few that are narrated in first-person, such as “For the King,” seem to be told from the author's point-of-view, or at least, a narrator very much like the author.

Smith's unique, multi-faceted characters allow the reader to gain an inside view of the thoughts and feelings of some fascinating people. These include Miss Adele, the transgender woman shopping for a corset in “Miss Adele Amidst the Corsets.” Over the course of this story, the reader learns that Miss Adele had a difficult childhood in which she was troubled by her parents' constant arguing. Her parents also did not accept her transition, and she brings the full weight of this emotional baggage into her perceptions about the corset store owners. Thus, the author demonstrates how a person's background and...