Mike Muñoz’s identity crisis starts with his growing up on an Indian reservation, even though he is not Native American, but half Mexican. His Mexican father abandoned the family when he was very young. He is left with his Caucasian mother who seems to be struggling with her own identity crisis. She is unable to find the right man, and the “work averse” men marries and quickly divorces do nothing to add any stability or direction to Mike’s life.

Throughout the story, Mike openly articulates his journey of self-discovery. In Chapter 3, he reflects back on his early years and concludes that outside influences and events that helped him to discover himself, not soul-searching:

And maybe I’d tell little Mike to start by looking outside himself instead of within the murky, undefined recesses of his heart. In my experience, a kid doesn’t gain much through introspection. A kid gets more by throwing a ball or wrestling with a dog or burning anthills with a magnifying glass (13).

As the story progresses, the books he reads, the people he interacts with, and his topiary artwork help him to realize who he is.

Mike’s struggle to discover his sexual identity is the most difficult journey for him.