What is the author's tone in This Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff?

There is a tone of fatalism and hopelessness through the narrative. The bulk of the novel is set in a working-class neighborhood in Chinook, Seattle. The kids Toby grows up with do not value education and resign themselves to the fact that they will follow in their parent's footsteps. They will not leave home and go to college and create better lives for themselves. This creates an atmosphere of hopelessness, which sets the tone for Toby's life.