Colson Whitehead's The Nickel Boys is told is third person point of view, which allows for expanded understanding of the various characters within the novel, specifically both Elwood Curtis and Jack Turner, the main characters.

This type of narration is evident from the opening paragraph:

Elwood received the best gift of his life on Christmas Day 1962, even if the ideas it put it in his head were his undoing. Martin Luther King At Zion Hill was the only album he owned and it never left the turntable.

As Elwood's passion for racial equality continues throughout the novel, despite the many challenges and evils that he discovers at the initially seemingly innocent Nickel Academy, the narrator describes Elwood's development and the blossoming friendship between him and Jack as they face the abuse of Nickel Academy. Elwood is characterized as idealistic, while Jack is shown to be much more wary and cynical, probably because of more time spent at Nickel. However, when the two escape at the end of the novel and Jack breaks his promise that he would never allow or help anyone escape with him, Elwood is killed. Jack takes on Elwood's identity, which is a secret kept until the end of the novel, despite there being flash forwards, because of the third-person narration.