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Paul is the story’s protagonist and narrator as the novel consists of his journal entries. Even though Paul is partially blind, he is the character that seems to “see” the most about what’s going on with his family and his community. Paul is preoccupied with his fear of his older brother Erik and the brutal nature of Erik’s character. He’s also always preoccupied with the reason he is blind: Paul knows he’s been told that his vision loss was caused when he stared at an eclipse too long as a child, but he feels puzzled by the fact that he can’t actually remember looking at the sun. The novel traces a series of flashbacks he has that in the end reveal the truth. Paul feels he and his family are perpetually living in the shadows of the “Erik Fisher Football Dream” and that his family doesn’t pay enough attention to him. Despite (or because of) his invisibility in his family, Paul is highly adaptable and he is able to adjust to the expectations of others around him, unlike his friend Joey, who is racist and clashes with the kids at Tangerine Middle School. Paul struggles with a sense of courage throughout the novel and wishes he could act more bravely when others attack him, both physically and verbally. He gets his chance when Luis is killed, and he finally comes face-to-face with Erik at the end, garnering the strength and identity he wrestled to define throughout the novel.

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