Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2019 Challenge Prompts - Regular
>
19 - a book told from multiple POVs
message 51:
by
Anne
(new)
Nov 14, 2018 05:59PM
My Name is Mary Sutter
reply
|
flag
HELP HERE. Does this mean multiple narrators or is it enough that the book has diffrent bita focused on stream of conscience from diffrent characters. I was thinking of The Prime of miss Jean Brodie.
Yes, the Ask and the Answer alternates between two POVs.
Johanne wrote: "Yes, the Ask and the Answer alternates between two POVs."Thank you. Really wanted to get that one in.
Alyssa wrote: "Six of Crows!!! All 6 characters POV are told. The hype is real with this one."I was literally coming here just to suggest that, lol. I LOVE that book
Melissa wrote: "One I read last year which would fit is The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. Good if you like classics and/or slightly ridiculous heists. I also second Homegoing and...."Ooh, and The Moonstone is one of those classics that's free on Kindle!
Ooh! I'm going to read From a Certain Point of View, which retells Star Wars scenes from the point of view of a different character from the way they're told in the movies. Boom - meta-nailed it!
I remembered Children of Virtue and Vengeance comes out in March and if it follows suit and is like Children of Blood and Bone it should have multiple POVs
All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin is told from the POV of three different characters. It wasn't my favorite book, but it was a quick and generally satisfying read dealing with issues of sexual harassment, bullying through social media, and parental responsibility.
We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter is told from the point of view of different member of a Jewish family during WWII. This book comes highly recommended by me! If you like books that make you feel all the feels, this is the one to go for! Could also work for the 'book about a family' prompt.
Not an easy read, but The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner works perfectly for this prompt, as it's narrated by different members of the Compson family.
Anyone know if A Week in December fits thia prompt?
I’m surprised no one has said Heroes of Olympus or Falling Kingdoms for this prompt
I'm 3/4 of the way through with Into the Water, which possibly wins the prize for most POVs ever written. Also, I'm quite enjoying it :-)
It would work for the unusual /no/different chapter headings also.
three Cassandra Clare series fits this prompt:the infernal devices series
the mortal instruments series
the dark artifices series
A lot of fantasy has multiple POVs. This year I read the first two books in the Demon Cycle by Peter V. Brett. The first book (The Warded Man) has three different POVs and in the second book there are 8 different POVs (!) There are 4 main ones and then there are 4 who only have one or a few chapters. The book has little symbols that follow the person, so you know it is this person if there is a spear etc. so it is not as confusing as you would think. The books might also work for unusul chapters, depending on how you interpret that prompt.
Tracy wrote: "I'm 3/4 of the way through with Into the Water, which possibly wins the prize for most POVs ever written. Also, I'm quite enjoying it :-)
It would work for the unusual /no/differ..."
OMG...yeah....ok I ended up giving that 2 stars because I was confused AF for the first huge chunk of the book...while there is a list of characters at the beginning of the book it doesn't adequately describe how everyone is connected to the plot. I also remember someone on one of the weekly check-in threads commenting that the audiobook was a dreadful decision for this book because they felt extra lost and they had no idea what was what so I posted this back then but...
if this book is on anyone's TBR/radar...save this list somewhere, you'll be happy you did!!!!
Nel (Danielle) Abbott - the person who dies at the start, the subject of the main investigation. Before her death she was researching the deaths at the drowning pool. (mom of Lena, sister of Jules/Julia). The drowning pool deaths she was looking at were: Libby (an accused witch from the 17th C), Anne Ward, Lauren Townsend & Katie Whittaker.
Lena Abbott - Nel's daughter. Friends with Katie & Josh Whittaker who attend(ed) the same school. Her mom & Katie (her best friend) have both drowned in the drowning pool.
Jules/Julia - Nel's sister who was estranged due to past events which are a spoiler so I won't say. She is now Lena's guardian although they don't really know each other.
Louise Whittaker - Josh & Katie's mom. She is suspicious of Nel and pretty much blames her for her daughter Katie's death. She's married but I can't remember her husband's name and he's not a very important character.
Katie Whittaker - Lena's best friend until she died in the drowning pool. Josh's sister, Lousie's daughter.
Josh Whittaker - Katie's brother who is an acquaintance/friend of Lena & a fellow student.
Erin Morgan - Detective from out of town helping Sean (local policeman) investigate the drowning of Nel Abbott.
Sean Townsend - Local policeman investigating Nel's death (also, his mother died at the drowning pool which nobody really considered before he was put on the case)
Helen Townsend - Sean's wife (although they have issues so she is often spending more time with her Father-in-law: Patrick). She is also the school principal.
Patrick Townsend - Sean's father, Helen's father-in-law. His wife (Lauren Townsend) passed away at the drowning pool and was one of the deaths there that Nel had been looking into before her own death.
Mark Henderson - A teacher at the local school (to reveal his main connection to the plot is a spoiler so I won't say what it is). He knows Helen & all of the teenagers of course (being their teacher): Lena, Josh (& he knew Katie).
Nickie Sage - A local lady who is considered the town's crazy lady but who considers herself a psychic. She tends to know about the town secrets.
The deaths at the drowning pool that Nel was investigating: Libby Seeton, Anne Ward, Lauren Townsend, Katie Whittaker
Stacey wrote: " OMG...yeah....ok I ended up giving that 2 stars because I was confused AF for the first huge chunk of the book..."LOL, Stacey, I saw that you gave a low rating. Mine is probably going to be around a 3.5 or 4 depending on the twist/ending. I'm still trying to guess. But I'm sitting up reading it now, because I can't put it down. Interestingly enough, as much as Ive been having trouble reading the past few months because my concentrations off, I've managed to keep everyone straight. I got a little confused in the beginning when they used Nell's full name, and then today when they brought up Mark ( you saw my notes on that though, I remembered pretty quickly without having to look back.) I can see how audio would be a complete nightmare, and I haven't decided yet if the use of so many POVs is overkill or pure genius, because it certainly keeps you guessing and having to say " wait, WTF is going on? Who was that? What just happened?" Its keeping me off the trail because I have to concentrate on who is who and what happened when and I'm pretty sure I'm not picking up on the clues which I think might be part of the point ;-)
Other suggestions:- How It Went Down (very timely)
- Wink Poppy Midnight (totally satisfying end)
- Ella Minnow Pea: A Novel in Letters (clever accomplishment)
- They Both Die at the End (limited 3rd, but some various limited 3rd perspectives)
- Children of Blood and Bone (I recommend the audio)
- Sing, Unburied, Sing (unexpectedly thought-provoking)
- Columbine (again, different limited 3rd person perspectives, thanks to included diary entries)
Tracy wrote: "Stacey wrote: " OMG...yeah....ok I ended up giving that 2 stars because I was confused AF for the first huge chunk of the book..."LOL, Stacey, I saw that you gave a low rating. Mine is probably g..."
Yes, I tend to read before bed or when I first wake up so add being tired/groggy to reading that and you'll get exactly where I was at!
The story wasn't terrible, but the confusion adversely affected my enjoyment factor for sure! xD I think my biggest mistake though was to just keep reading through the confusion instead of stopping to figure out what I could at each point? I'd never read Hawkins before and I remember assuming that the writing might be confusing on purpose and that I would figure things out as I kept reading...which in a way was true but it wasn't until the last bits of the book so yeah...
I think if I were to re-read the book now that I know what's what & who's who I'd probably give it a higher rating, partly why I posted the character list for anyone else that might take it on! :D
As far as having so many characters I think there are a lot of mixed feelings on that from what I read in reviews...I think it depends on what kind of reader you are! If you, as a reader, require or strongly connect with character depth then you probably won't care a ton for this book because with so many characters in here you don't get time to learn very much about any of them. A lot of the criticism I read was that the characters seemed to run together personality-wise and weren't strongly individual enough...but not sure if people felt that way because they were confused and just assumed that was the one factor that made them feel confused OR if the descriptions for several characters were actually similar??
I'm glad you're enjoying it more than I did and that you're able to keep it straight for the most part!
I also remember thinking that Nel being a nickname for Danielle was something I would never have picked up automatically if I hadn't matched the contexts! xD I specifically remember thinking....wait a second...there was no Nellie???...or am I just loosing my mind?! Ahaha
Definitely going with All the Light We Cannot See!I know I'm going to love it and have been putting it off for some unknown silly reason. Can't wait to get to this in 2019, will most likely be one of my first reads for the new year :)
Trina wrote: "Definitely going with All the Light We Cannot See!I know I'm going to love it and have been putting it off for some unknown silly reason. Can't wait to get to this in 2019, will mo..."
That book is so beautiful. My advice is if you don't seem to be pulled in right away, just push through! The writing is so unlike other books I'm used to reading (in a good way) that it took me a little while to be sucked in. It reminded me so much of an adult fiction version of Salt to the Sea, if you've read that.
Lindi wrote: "Trina wrote: "Definitely going with All the Light We Cannot See!I know I'm going to love it and have been putting it off for some unknown silly reason. Can't wait to get to this in..."
I actually just finished Salt to the Sea and quite liked it. Something hindered me absolutely loving that book though, and I think it could be the fact it was YA. So a more adult version sounds perfect! Thanks for the advice, I will push through if I feel a bit drudged down in the beginning.
I'm too lazy today to go hunting through my TBR, so I see that Everything I Never Told You has been mentioned here...I'll go for that!
If you like mysteries, Dark Sacred Night shifts between the POVs of Ballard and Bosch. It's the best Bosch book in years IMO. If you read Kindle books, it's on sale right now.
Lynette wrote: "
The Witching Hour by Anne Rice is definitely POV. I bet a lot of her books are. (Author of Interview with a Vampire) It is a long book, for sure, but quite captivating..."An old favorite!!! This makes me want to do a re-read, but I already have several on my plan. I've read this more than once :-)
I want to keep up with some of the series I started in 2018, so I'll probably read Palace of Treason here.
I'm reading Violent Ends: A Novel in Seventeen Points of Views
Alacia wrote: "Has anyone read The Lying Game? Does that work for this one?"As far as I remember, The Lying Game is told from a single perspective (character Isa Wilde) but the sections are each named for a rule in the friends' "lying game" so you could use it for the book around a game prompt.
Allison wrote: "My current read, The History of Love would fit this prompt."Loved this book so much <3
The Slap by Australian author Christos Tsiolkas would work for this prompt. Confronting & fantastic reading if you're up for it!
A Game of Thrones or any of the Ice & Fire books, each "chapter" is from a different character's perspective
John wrote: "A Game of Thrones or any of the Ice & Fire books, each "chapter" is from a different character's perspective"So in your opnion multiple pov is not necessarily the same as multiple narrators?
Thomas wrote: "John wrote: "A Game of Thrones or any of the Ice & Fire books, each "chapter" is from a different character's perspective"So in your opnion multiple pov is not necessarily the same as..."
It's not to me. IMO, POV doesn't necessarily have to be first person.
Katy wrote: "Thomas wrote: "John wrote: "A Game of Thrones or any of the Ice & Fire books, each "chapter" is from a different character's perspective"So in your opnion multiple pov is not necessar..."
Then i will probably have A Week in Decmber
Do you all think An Instance of the Fingerpost would work? This has been on my TBR list forever and this would be a good excuse to finally get to it.
I just read Girls Burn Brighter and it would work for this (as well as the prompt re: a book set in Asia, and likely some others). I really loved it, and highly recommend it.
Mister Monkey A friend gave me this book and I just finished it yesterday. It's about a horrid play based on an awful children's book. POV is handed over from one character to another at each chapter change, and gradually many things are illuminated. Funny and well-written.
Hey I was wondering if Us Against You by Frederik Backman is okay for this prompt, read the first Beartown book this year, and the translation in Dutch just came out so I'm excited to read it.
Just checking. This doesn't have to be first person POV does it? If not I think I will slot War and Peace in here because I definitely won't finish it this year.The book is told in switching third person limited so even though there is a narrator, each chapter follows a single character and who this character is changes throughout the book. Does that make sense?
Jess wrote: "Just checking. This doesn't have to be first person POV does it? If not I think I will slot War and Peace in here because I definitely won't finish it this year.The book is told in swi..."
Mutiple third person POV is very usual, especially when you follow more than two narrators there aren´t that many first-person multiple POV stories. So yes, in my mind, multiple third person narrators work for this.
The 100 by Kass MorganThe Power by Naomi Alderman
The Bookman’s Tale by Charlie Lovett
I'm new to this challenge, so hopefully I am doing this correctly, but I really enjoyed reading The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner. If I am understanding things correctly, one book can be used for multiple prompts? So it could also be used for #17 (a book set on a college or university campus) and #31 (a book about a family). In my case, it would also satisfy #7 (a reread).
Maureen wrote: "I'm new to this challenge, so hopefully I am doing this correctly, but I really enjoyed reading The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner. If I am understanding things correctly, one ..."Different people set their own rules for how they want to do the challenge. So, if you want to use the same book for multiple prompts, that's perfectly fine! Sometimes others prefer to make it more of a challenge for themselves and read a different book for each prompt, so you'll see both in this group.
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Lilac Girls (other topics)Lost Roses (other topics)
Lethal White (other topics)
The Sound and the Fury (other topics)
Everything I Never Told You (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Martha Hall Kelly (other topics)Celeste Ng (other topics)
Sally Hepworth (other topics)
Tommy Orange (other topics)
Ruta Sepetys (other topics)
More...
