Take a story's temperature by studying its tone. Is it hopeful? Cynical? Snarky? Playful?
Thoughtful and Filled with Hope
Despite the fact that she's just a sixth grader, Frannie infuses the narrative in Feathers with lots of insights into the way the world works… even if it's just from her little corner of the universe. Even something as mundane as elementary school classroom antics get the Frannie treatment, and she gives us her insightful thoughts about exactly why Trevor is such a huge jerk:
Then Trevor was standing again. Standing but cursing both of us. But his curse words sounded strange—hollow and faraway. Like he was just learning them. Like he was practicing at being some kind of tough kid. Instead of truly being one. (14.57)
And that's the thing about the tone of the book: Even when Frannie is talking about someone she does not like, she presents him in a totally sympathetic light. Frannie doesn't think the worst of people, and she's not filled with gloom and doom, so neither is the tone of the book. Instead, it strives to understand how the world works, and infuses every page with hope that the world will, in fact, get better.