Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2017 Challenge prompts
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A book with an unreliable narrator
I'm about one-third through The Traitor Baru Cormorant and thinking this qualifies. Any thoughts from somebody who has already finished it? I know it's third-person, but it's such a close third-person that it feels like first-person much of the time.
Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan was my pick for this category. Great book!
I was thinking What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty would work for this category. You are seeing the word through Alice's eyes after she lost 10 years of her memory and is really not a reliable source about her own situation.
Does Emma by Jane Austen count as an unreliable narrator? I'm not using this for the prompt but was curious as I am reading it now.
Tami wrote: "Does Emma by Jane Austen count as an unreliable narrator? I'm not using this for the prompt but was curious as I am reading it now."I don't really think so. Emma's approximately as reliable as any other person. You could say none of us are reliable narrators, especially as regards our own lives, but to me that's being a bit more philosophical than the spirit of the prompt.
Kami wrote: "I was thinking What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty would work for this category. You are seeing the word through Alice's eyes after she lost 10 years of her memory and is really not a reliable sour..."I've read that book and would agree that it qualifies for this prompt. I enjoyed the book. It is a fast read!
I'm sorry if this has been asked! But would Girl on the train for under this category? Thanks!
Claire wrote: "I'm sorry if this has been asked! But would Girl on the train for under this category? Thanks!"I would say it does....
Claire wrote: "I'm sorry if this has been asked! But would Girl on the train for under this category? Thanks!"Yes. I think it definitely would.
I just finished this book - enjoyed it - and no idea it was an "unreliable narrator" until I read it. It's narrator is an 11 year old girl and I spent much of the book thinking....is she right on this? or is it her perspective? .. The Mutual Admiration Society by Lesley Kagan
Thank you ladies for the responses! :)
Stephanie wrote: "There is a list of Unreliable Narrator books on GR. I'm going with Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson a book that was on my TBR list already anyway."Do you have a link to this list?
Also, does anyone know if Good As Gone would count for this topic?
Rachel wrote: "What about I Never Promised You a Rose Garden? I read this once before but I have no memory of it whatsoever, but the main character has schizophrenia."It's been a while since I've read that one, too. But I seem to recall the delusions being fairly easy for the reader to identify and separate from reality? The topic seems to be on point, though.
I'm planning to read Suicide Notes, because it pretty much starts out with the narrator saying, "I'm not crazy," but he's being kept in a some kind of mental care facility for 45 days.If that doesn't work, I've also got a copy of Autobiography of a Schizophrenic Girl
is anyone reading We aerial Liars? Would this work for this prompt?
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Tami wrote: "Does Emma by Jane Austen count as an unreliable narrator? I'm not using this for the prompt but was curious as I am reading it now."Emma's not the narrator of Emma
Paulien wrote: "a series of unfortunate events, does that count?"I'm going to go with a soft no. He's more mysterious than unreliable. I could see the argument though.
I just finished We Have Always Lived in the Castle for this prompt, and I absolutely loved it. Read it in a day. Recommended!
I'm struggling with this category ... I'm not really sure what it means by "unreliable narrator", is it books written from multiple perspectives or something different? Can anyone recommend any books that may give me a clue? :)
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In Lolita, (view spoiler)
In Fight Club, (view spoiler)
In Gone Girl, (view spoiler)
In We Were Liars, (view spoiler)
In Made You Up, the main character struggles with schizophrenia.
In Before I Go to Sleep and in What Alice Forgot, the main character has a form of amnesia that prevents her from remembering things.
A mystery novel in which a detective is solving the mystery is usually NOT an unreliable narrator, so long as the detective accurately describes each event that unfolds in front of him/her as the book moves forward.
Nadine wrote: "An unreliable narrator is a book from the point of view of someone who is (intentionally or unintentionally) misleading you about who she/he is and/or about the events unfolding in front of her/his..."Thanks, that really helps! I've read Gone Girl and Before I Go to Sleep before, but I know what sort of thing to look for now. :) Also, I reckon I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh may fall into this category, and if not it's still a fantastic book that's well worth a read!
In the Lake of the Woods by Tim OBrien is a great book that fits!!!
Kate, an unreliable narrator is one whose version of events isn't trustworthy. That could be from a number of causes: deliberate deception (the narrator is either hiding what actually happened or is trying to manipulate the reader's interpretation of what happened), an inability to accurately relate events (caused by drug/alcohol use, mental illness, etc), or a distorted point of view (ex: a child, animal, etc who would naturally interpret events differently than an adult). The key to an unreliable narrator is that they aren't trustworthy. Approach it like a police officer listening to someone's statement. Even if they don't have a lot of information to give you, can you accept their statement as likely to be true? Do you have a reason to believe that they are lying to you? Are they a capable witness?
Probably one of the best examples is The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. It's a murder mystery told from the 1st-person point of view of one of the people in the town who was a close friend of the victim. His closeness with everyone involved naturally means you as the reader have to question his interpretation of people and their actions. Is he right about so-and-so's behavior? etc. Obviously with a murder mystery, it's incredibly spoiler-able so if you decide to pick it up (which you should) I suggest going into it cold.
I started We Were Liars and found it fit well for this prompt and looked back and saw it was recommended a few times.
Would Planetfall count for this? Ren holds a lot of stuff back from the reader, but she tells you straight up that she is doing that.
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Sure. I think the unreliable narrator doesn't have to hide the fact that they are unreliable. Sometimes they are upfront about it.
Does Second Life by SJ Watson count for this? :)
Just finished The Lifeboat for this prompt. I enjoyed it but I think I was expecting something more from it that it didn't really deliver. The ending in particular was rather disappointing.
I read The Remains of the Day for this category. Despite its conciseness, it's richness lies in what is unsaid more than that which is said (and what is said is written in beautiful language. I love Ishiguro's work). In this respect, the unreliability of the narrator becomes an integral component of the story, in my opinion.I can also think of The Sense of an Ending which would fit this prompt.
I read The Walls Around Us for this challenge. Has anyone else read it? I found it more of a ghost/paranormal? story. I suppose both Amber and Violet could be considered unreliable, but it certainly was not what I expected in terms of unreliability. Would really like to discuss with someone else who has read it.
I'm Thinking of Ending Things I read last year, really quick read. Not going to say anything else, just read it!
Jule wrote: "I read The Walls Around Us for this challenge. Has anyone else read it? I found it more of a ghost/paranormal? story. I suppose both Amber and Violet could be considered unreliable,..."I have read it, and really enjoyed it. Though it doesn't automatically spring to mind as being part of the unreliable narrator category, I can see the argument for that, and maybe it should. Certainly there is some misremembering and some active repression going on. And of course there's the paranormal aspect.
2108 Tami wrote: "Does Emma by Jane Austen count as an unreliable narrator? I'm not using this for the prompt but was curious as I am reading it now."Tami -- for a fascinating statement on the point of view of Emma and of the only fairly recent understandings of some of the literary innovations of Jane Austen, try this article from the Guardian.
A question that arises to me from it is the extent to which Austen's use of free indirect discourse introduces an element of unreliable narration, even as the narrator remains omniscient -- if that is even a good question.
"It was only in the early 20th century that critics began agreeing on a name for it: free indirect style (a translation from the original French: style indirect libre). It describes the way in which a writer imbues a third-person narration with the habits of thought or expression of a fictional character. "
https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...
"Emma, published 200 years ago ...., was revolutionary not because of its subject matter: Austen’s jesting description to Anna of the perfect subject for a novel – 'Three or four families in a country village' – fits it well. It was certainly not revolutionary because of any intellectual or political content. But it was revolutionary in its form and technique. Its heroine is a self-deluded young woman with the leisure and power to meddle in the lives of her neighbours. The narrative was radically experimental because it was designed to share her delusions. The novel bent narration through the distorting lens of its protagonist’s mind. Though little noticed by most of the pioneers of fiction for the next century and more, it belongs with the great experimental novels of Flaubert or Joyce or Woolf. Woolf wrote that if Austen had lived longer and written more, 'She would have been the forerunner of Henry James and of Proust'. In Emma, she is." (Bold added.)
I finished this prompt this week and hated the book.I went with Room
There is a reason I just generally avoid this genre of book. I'm not going to go into what I disliked about it here... my review is up on the book's page.
Michelle wrote: "I think [spoilers removed] would be an excellent choice but also spoilery..."I don't think it's a spoiler to tell us the title. But I do agree. I loved that book!
I've just read The Blind Assassin - which was absolutely stunning, although it took a while to get there. The narrator tells a story but deliberately omits information - until you realize that the story is in the omissions and everything is something else. I am going to use it for this prompt because it is a hard one to fill - it is difficult to know in advance which narrator is reliable (for example I don't think Rebecca has an unreliable narrator, she is just uninformed).
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Would Things We Have In Common by Tasha Kavanagh fit this category?
Marta wrote: "I've just read The Blind Assassin - which was absolutely stunning, although it took a while to get there. The narrator tells a story but deliberately omits information - until you real..."Loved that one too!
Nadine - so sorry you didn't like Handmaid's Tale, but most of her books are different from each other. I personally didn't see many things the same - other than the fact that both feature strong female characters.
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One of my favorite authors --- and people!!
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Ugh. I hated that book. Pretentious garbage.