Point of View

The Hero of This Book is written from the first person point of view of an unnamed narrator. Because the novel is a meta-narrative, the narrator’s identity often blurs with the author Elizabeth McCracken’s identity. However, the author is careful never to name or to specifically identify who the narrator is. “Like any nameless narrator,” the narrator says she lacks a name simply because “I’ve just declined to introduce myself” (36). Although she goes on to say that she hates “novels with unnamed narrators” and “didn’t mean to write one,” she makes no further attempts to clarify the truth of who she is (36). In large part, the narrator’s avoidant tendencies and refusal to lend this fictional version of herself further distinguishing details, is because she does not want to admit that she is writing her own story. “I am unable,” she...