Point of View

In Preparation for the Next Life is told in the third person omniscient point of view. The author constantly shifts between characters. The three most common characters whose perspectives are given are Zou Lei, Skinner and Jimmy. For example, during the climax of the book, we move from seeing Skinner reacting to Zou Lei’s disappearance, then back to Zou Lei to see why she vanished. Occasionally, the narrator will give the reader information from a different character while following someone close to them. For example, when Skinner confronts Jimmy, the reader is looking over his shoulder. However, the author pauses to tell the reader Jimmy had, in fact, stolen everything Skinner suspected him to have. This shift back and forth is used to keep the audience aware of every piece of the plot; especially things they may have guessed beforehand.

Language and Meaning

The...