Point of View

This story is told in the first-person by Lucas Painter. It is not made clear at first, but Lucas is telling this story in 2019 at Connor’s burial to Connor’s grandson, Harris. The portions of the story set in 1969 are told in the past tense while the portions set in 2019 are told in the present tense.

Lucas’ story is biased because he speaks for the other characters in the novel. Despite the bias, the first-person point of view is the best way for Hyde to present the story she is trying to tell. As Lucas tells Harris, his story is “a story about a lot of people doing a lot better than they expected to. A lot better than anybody thought they would” (271-272). Lucas is the ideal narrator because he is the one who set in motion the process of events that led...