Point of View

The novel is written from Ethan, Joe, Maribel, Rachel, Bud, and Tara's first person points of view. With the exception of Ethan, each of these characters narrates one chapter. Ethan narrates both Chapters 1 and 7, thus imposing a circularity on the meandering narrative form. By writing the novel from the first person perspectives of six different characters, the author lends an expansiveness to her thematic explorations. The narrators are linked through their familial and romantic relationships. However, they are also connected by their shared frustrations with their families, their searches for happiness, and their longings for romantic fulfillment. Through Ethan's point of view, the reader is first introduced to Gil, a character who reappears throughout the novel. Ethan's relationship with his father, mother, and sister establish the narrative's interests in exploring familial relationships. Indeed, Ethan's fraught relationship with Gil, his close relationship with Allyson, and his...