Point of View

The novel primarily deploys a limited third-person point of view that hews mostly to the perspective of the novel's main protagonist, Nella Rogers. However, there are instances during which the point of view shifts to three other characters: Kendra Rae Phillips, Diana Gordon, and Shani Edmonds. These shifts in point of view primarily exist to allow Harris to portray both necessary plot functions and alternate attitudes on Black issues from other Black women.

The point of view deployed for the sections of the novel that attach themselves to the perspective of Nella is remarkably insular and circuitous, often devoting long paragraphs to explorations of the anxieties and fears that plague Nella as she struggles to navigate the white corporate world. The powerful quality of this anxiety and the grip it has on Nella creates empathy between the reader and Nella as they come to understand...