# Books where you'd like to get the story from another character's point of view **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 28, 2007, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796 "2007-09-28T12:25:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![\_bolding\_mine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/77aa72/32.png) [@\_bolding\_mine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_bolding_mine)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2007, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/21 "2007-09-28T21:34:52Z")
I wonder what Friday thought of Robinson Crusoe ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2007, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/22 "2007-09-28T21:53:00Z")
_Oliver Twist_ from Fagin’s perspective (and with his back-story). _Gone With the Wind_ from the point of view of Rhett (almost done by Pat Conroy, but he dropped out) _The Scarlet Letter_ from Prynn/Chillingsworth’s perspective. _The Miracle Worker_ (a play, not a book) told from Helen’s perspective. (“Who the hell is this bitch and why does she keep playing with my hands and hitting me?”) ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2007, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/23 "2007-09-28T21:55:10Z")
> [@'\[bolding](#): > > ']I wonder what Friday thought of Robinson Crusoe There’s actually a Peter O’Toole/Richard Roundtree movie from the 70s, [Man Friday](http://imdb.com/title/tt0074849/), on this. It ends with O’Toole becoming Friday’s slave (as opposed to the books- in DeFoe’s first sequel to Robinson Crusoe Friday is killed shortly after rescue). ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2007, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/24 "2007-09-28T22:05:48Z")
[QUOTE=Eonwe] Not sure if that was a joke, but there is a [play](http://books.google.com/books?id=RC6JJmB_JEcC&dq=&pg=PP1&ots=qRiAVT7Ejg&sig=Hyk5gkgIzZghYuslN4JEWenTAnc&prev=http://www.google.com/search%3Fhl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DX%26oi%3Dspell%26resnum%3D0%26ct%3Dresult%26cd%3D1%26q%3Drosencrantz%2Band%2Bguildenstern%2Bare%2Bdead%26spell%3D1&sa=X&oi=print&ct=title#PPP1,M1) and a [movie](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100519/) that do exactly that. [/QUOTE] Sorry, it was a joke. I thought by picking such obscure characters that it would be obvious-- especially since I picked both of them. ---
**Author:** ![Taber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ac91a4/32.png) [@Taber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taber)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2007, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/25 "2007-09-28T22:19:12Z")
[QUOTE=John Mace] Sorry, it was a joke. I thought by picking such obscure characters that it would be obvious-- especially since I picked both of them. [/QUOTE] Especially since Erie simulposted the same joke with more winking ---
**Author:** ![Tenar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@Tenar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenar)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/26 "2007-09-29T02:02:03Z")
I would like to read the first \*Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever \* books from the POV of Lord Mhoram. ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/27 "2007-09-29T02:30:57Z")
[QUOTE=Clockwork And Candy] _Jane Eyre_ told from Bertha Rochester’s POV. I’ve always thought she was the most interesting character in the story. [/QUOTE] Unless I’m also being whoosed, that’s already been written as [The Wide Sargasso Sea](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Sargasso_Sea). It’s also been made into a movie. On a shallower note, I’d like to see the Harry Potter series from Draco’s POV. The books attempted to show him as this over-priviledged character but he never got away with anything and seemed to get the short end of the stick more often than not. It seemed obvious JK Rowling disliked the character sand she even made a point of pointing out Draco’s “receding hairline” in the epilogue. Of course, I’m sure some thriteen year old has already written it… ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/28 "2007-09-29T02:33:13Z")
Rashomon. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/29 "2007-09-29T08:36:11Z")
\*Death at the Bar \* was first narrated by one of the characters and switches to another after the first narrator is murdered. :eek: Not content to let it be, the author finally reveals that the second narrator is the murderer. :eek: :eek: ---
**Author:** ![bundykala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@bundykala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bundykala)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/30 "2007-09-29T12:09:04Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866] Another real life example of this sort of book is “Wicked”, from the POV of the Wicked Witch of the West. [/QUOTE] I came in to mention this. Good book. In response to the question in the OP, no one book in particular comes to mind for me (though it’s kind of a hobby of mine to read most things from the perspective of the antagonist) but the Grimm brothers spawned a hell of a lot of one-sided stories. All those wicked stepmothers, witches and evil queens.. people just aren’t like that! I want to see psychological studies done on these characters. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/31 "2007-09-29T12:24:20Z")
The author of _Wicked_ has several other similar books, I forget the titles, but there’s one of Cinderella from the view of the step-mother (IIRC, I couldn’t get through it) and a couple of others. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/32 "2007-09-29T12:27:54Z")
[QUOTE=erie774] _To Kill a Mockingbird_ as told by “Boo” Radley. [/QUOTE] I thought about mentioning this one, but it would basically be his tale of watching the children from behind a window. Sort of like Charlie in “Flowers for Algernon.” It would require a skillful writer. Harper Lee does give us a glimpse of Boo’s point of view when she has Scout standing on his porch after walking him home in the final pages. It’s an excellent paragraph, starting with “the children” and then after he describes seeing them run to meet Atticus “his children,” and ending with “Summer came and he watched his chldren’s hearts break. Autumn again, and Boo’s children needed him.” ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/33 "2007-09-29T13:29:16Z")
So far, my favorite suggestions are Huck Finn from Jim’s view, and Oliver Twist from Fagin’s. Both would be wonderful, I expect. There’s almost a genre of hero tales told from the villain’s point of view. Although I’ve not read a bunch of them, I’m guessing that the king of the genre is _Grendel_. I was thinking that _Treasure Island_ from Long John Silver’s view would be good, but then I remembered that i’ve watched the Johnny Depp trilogy. It’s been done, more or less. Hmm. It’s hard to come up with good ones. It might be fun to see the Willy Wonka chocolate factory told from the view of an oompa-loompa, to whom the change in masters is almost insignificant. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/34 "2007-09-29T13:57:11Z")
[QUOTE=Left Hand of Dorkness] It’s hard to come up with good ones. [/QUOTE] Indeed it is. Which is why I’m going for the book of the movie _Alien_ told from the Alien’s point of view. _I was curled up asleep in an egg when a guy in a spacesuit came along and stared at me for simply ages. Then he swallowed me. He and his henchmen kidnapped me and kept me prisoner in the first guy’s stomach on a space ship. After a while I woke up covered in coleslaw (which I so hate btw) so I had to get out of there pretty damn quick and hide somewhere safe. Then I was attacked by a cat…_ ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/35 "2007-09-29T14:15:55Z")
I want to see the applicable Vorkosigan books (Shards of Honor, Barrayar, and The Warrior’s Apprentice) written from the POV of Bothari. It would make writing TKAM from “Boo” Radley’s POV look easy, but it would still be a fascinating read, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Prize](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d2c977/32.png) [@Sir\_Prize](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Prize)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/36 "2007-09-29T15:42:00Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] _Oliver Twist_ from Fagin’s perspective (and with his back-story). [/QUOTE] [Fagin the Jew](http://www.randomhouse.com/doubleday/graphicnovels/fagin.html) ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/37 "2007-09-29T17:00:46Z")
[QUOTE=FriarTed] DRACULA- Renfield’s POV [/QUOTE] It’s been done at least once: [Renfield](http://www.amazon.com/Renfield-Barbara-Hambly/dp/0425217892/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-0032254-5540852?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1191085062&sr=8-1) ---
**Author:** ![Paladud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Paladud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paladud)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/38 "2007-09-29T17:03:18Z")
GRRM could have written at least one volume with narration from Sandor Clegane. If he had to scrap Bran or Sansa to make room for it, I could live with that. It would also be interesting to see some Joffrey chapters, though they would have scared away half the fan base. Atlas Shrugged narrated by the moocher element instead of the Galtists. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/39 "2007-09-29T18:37:50Z")
Every now an then, I will be channel-surfing, and I will come across a station playing _Animal House_. As I get older and crankier, I often find myself feeling sympathy for the dean. “Fat, drunk, and stupid, is no way to go through life.” Yes, I know, he was an Evil Authority Figure, but he had a point. I would like to see _Animal House_ or _If…_ , told from the POV of the schoolmaster. Mary Stewart’s _The Wicked Day_ was the story of the fall of King Arthur…told from Mordred’s point of view. Parke Godwin’s _Sherwood_ was the story of Robin Hood… told from the Sheriff of Nottingham’s point of view. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796/40 "2007-09-29T21:02:45Z")
[QUOTE=John Mace] Sorry, it was a joke. I thought by picking such obscure characters that it would be obvious-- especially since I picked both of them. [/QUOTE] I figured as much. I just thought that on the off chance you weren’t (or there were other people who didn’t get your reference) that I’d cite the play anyway. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-where-youd-like-to-get-the-story-from-another-characters-point-of-view/420796.md?page=3)