Point of View

Most of the novel's scenes are presented from the perspective of Feng-Li, a 10-year-old girl from Taiwan who winds up living in America with her two older siblings. In most stories of this kind, the author limits the perspective to a single character. In this novel, that would be Feng-Li who is arguably the most important character. However, there are some scenes that take place outside Feng-Li's sight and understanding. For example, Feng-Li begins school without the benefit of speaking English. She does not know what the teacher or the other students are saying. The author presents these scenes in English for the reader's benefit, meaning the reader has information that Feng-Li does not have. Another example is seen when Ke-Gang walks Feng-Li to catch her bus one morning. He tells Olivia he wonders how Feng-Li manages to get through the day with no support...