Books that are written from several different viewpoints

[nettle]

It is fine if book is written from two, three or even four viewpoints but lately i have finished Priestess of the White by Trudi Canavan. i have not idea how managed to finish it, it has go really interesting plot but the story is told from so many different points of view (i will not lie if i say minimum 15) that as story goes it is becoming hard to get through the book.

Have you got such expiriences from reading books?

 

[mosaix]

Try The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. It considered to be the first detective story to be written in the English language (1860's) and is written from the indivdual viewpoints of the characters involved in the mystery. Cleverly, Collins varies the writing and narrative style from one character to the next.

 

[Pyan]

So is Number of the Beast by RAH - five or six, if I remember.
Didn't cause me a lot of problems, - I did have to refer to the start of a section occasionally to just check who was speaking, but it was interesting to get different viewpoints.

 

[Marvolo]

You mean all in first person? Or just third person limited spread across a wide array of characters?

I find I either like one viewpoint or a full cast, without an in-between. Harry Potter is almost entirely from Harry's viewpoint and I like it. A Game of Thrones is from a full cast and I like it too. When a book is written from a strict duo or trio of characters I tend to wish for the next chapter so I can get back to who I really care about. I remember the Sword of Truth series being that way. I wanted to skip ahead constantly to get to the next 'plot' chapter.

 

[BookStop]

The Poisonwood Bible is written from the viewpoints of a woman and her 3 daughters. It was brilliantly done and easy to read once i got into the rhythm of each character. Not sure i could do 15 points of view though.

 

[Rane Longfox]

George RR Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series has at least ten different POVs, and it works really well. Very hard to do well, though.

 

[Nesacat]

Ryonosuke Akutagawa did this with his tale In A Grove, which was the basis of the movie Rashomon. The story is told from the point of view of several different characters and they all give their versions of a murder that has taken place. One of the points of view is actually that of the murdered man himself. It's very well done.

Tash Aw followed suit recently with Harmony Silk Factory. The book is divided into sections with each section being one person's point of view. Again they all discuss the same period in time and one particular person. Again it's very, very well done.

 

[j d worthington]

I've encountered several different books using this technique... some better, some worse. Cold Harbour, by Francis Brett Young, made very good use of it, as it helped to increase the air of mystery and built the tension as the pieces come together... very well orchestrated. Which is a good description, as I'd compare it to a symphony opposed to a soloist.

Mosaix: Are you sure about that? First detective novel, perhaps... but Poe, I thought, was the recognized father of the modern detective tale, and he died in 1849....

 

[nettle]

Or just third person limited spread across a wide array of characters?

the book is written in third person and in one chapter there is even up to three or four different view points
in some books i think this works very well but in the one i am talking about i think it does not

I find I either like one viewpoint or a full cast, without an in-between. Harry Potter is almost entirely from Harry's viewpoint and I like it. A Game of Thrones is from a full cast and I like it too. When a book is written from a strict duo or trio of characters I tend to wish for the next chapter so I can get back to who I really care about. I remember the Sword of Truth series being that way. I wanted to skip ahead constantly to get to the next 'plot' chapter.

i have found that i as well prefer to read a book from one viewpoint but again there are some exeptions

 

[mosaix]

I've encountered several different books using this technique... some better, some worse. Cold Harbour, by Francis Brett Young, made very good use of it, as it helped to increase the air of mystery and built the tension as the pieces come together... very well orchestrated. Which is a good description, as I'd compare it to a symphony opposed to a soloist.

Mosaix: Are you sure about that? First detective novel, perhaps... but Poe, I thought, was the recognized father of the modern detective tale, and he died in 1849....

Quite right JD - novel it should be. It has all the elements that came to be recognised as essential in any 'who done it' - many red herrings, many suspects, and two sleuths - one a bungler and the other a professional.

 

[Werthead]

I'm trying to remember how many viewpoint characters there are in The Malazan Book of the Fallen and could only come up with lots. At least two dozen in the first six books, probably more. Oddly enough, it works pretty well.

 

[ravenus]

Dracula - terrific use of multiple viewpoints.

 

[sassy1]

i've read Trudi Canavan's Black Magician Trilogy and, if I remember correctly, she did write the story from quite a few different view points in that, but even i still managed to keep track, though it is annoying when you really want to follow one particular thread and it switches to someone else for a few chapters, makes one read into the even earlier hours of the morning lol