Point of View

The author uses a third-person, omniscient narrator. The narration is fairly straightforward and trustworthy. It does not dwell in maudlin details. It presents the facts as they happen in the given time frame. Readers learn what characters are thinking via the narrator.

The novel begins in the present, but jumps around to different time periods. It’s a non-linear story. The perspective shifts from that of Kirsten in Year Fifteen after the pandemic to when Arthur was a young man in acting school, 25 years before his death. Many other times in between are covered as well.

There are excerpts from an interview between the publisher Diallo and Kirsten. Readers know that he has interviewed other subjects, but are only privy to his conversations with Kirsten. Readers never see the final product in the newspaper. Arthur’s obituary is mentioned throughout the book, but the full...