Point of View

This novel is told by a third-person narrator who focuses his narration entirely on Cal. Consider the opening sentence: “When Cal comes out of the house, the rooks have got hold of something” (1). The remainder of the novel is told in the present tense with a focus on Cal. The narrator records Cal’s thoughts, actions, and emotions, but the reader gets glimpses into the other characters’ minds only as Cal interacts with them. For instance, the reader must wait, just like Cal does, to learn why Trey had been coming to visit him. The narrator indicates that it has been two weeks since they first met when “They’ve been painting for about twenty minutes when Trey says, out of the clear blue sky, ‘My brother’s gone missing’” (78).

Even though this novel is a story about Cal’s attempt to reconnect with his...