Point of View

The novel is narrated in the third-person, past tense. This facilitates the process of following the plot and leaves little ambiguity about the novel's thematic content of racism and homophobia. The narration primarily follows Ike and Buddy Lee. The first few chapters of the novel alternate between focusing on one or the other character; this provides the reader with a clear understanding of how both men struggle in the wake of their sons' death. The other chapters tend to feature Ike and Buddy Lee together, the focus on each equally disbursed. This forces the reader's attention toward those two, rendering the other characters as ancillary means to enhance their development.

The third-person narration occasionally merges into first-person depictions of Ike's and Buddy's thoughts, thus allowing the reader to understand their psychology. These moments are brief and sporadic but enhance the development of each character since...