Point of View

The novel is narrated in the first person, always from the perspective of Marianne as she retraces her steps through childhood, exploring the relationship she had with her absent mother. All of the memories and mentions of her other family members and friends are colored by both Marianne’s initial perspective of events and her present-day adjustments. The novel is based on the author’s childhood and Siân Hughes’ imagination of what the truth was behind her mother’s disappearance. She wrote principally to answer her questions about her mother, herself, and how her childhood manifested in her adult life and her identity as a mother.

Hughes’ decision to write from her perspective but as “Marianne” humanizes her and allows additional space for the thoughts and feelings that she was not able to explore before and feel anything other than shame for her mother...