Thanks to everyone who entered our giveaway last week. The winner of the ARC of Possession by Elana Johnson is... Heather Reid! Congratulations, Heather, and please email us (weheartya at gmail dot com) with your mailing address.


Yesterday I started (and finished) reading Room by Emma Donoghue, a brilliant book that is now among my all-time favorites. It’s about a young woman who is kidnapped from her college and kept captive in a shack for 7 years, during which time she gives birth to a son named Jack. Surprisingly, the story is told from Jack’s point of view.

Sadly, the book’s premise is not entirely fictional. A number of real-life headlines bear striking similarity. But because of the unexpected perspective that Donoghue chose, Room is able to avoid wallowing in misery, melodrama, or discomfort. Jack is a happy, intelligent child, and through his eyes we are able to see not only his world but also our own, in fresh and enlightening ways.

"The wind makes the leaves go swishy swishy. I hear a kid shout, maybe in another yard behind the big hedge or else he's invisible. God's yellow face has a cloud on top. Colder suddenly. The world is always changing brightness and hotness and soundness, I never know how it's going to be the next minute. The cloud looks kind of gray blue, I wonder has it got rain inside it."

"I kiss her face where the tears are, that's how the sea tastes."

So that got me thinking about perspectives, and how every story can be fresh if we just find the right point of view to tell it from.

Another good example is The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. The story is about a man fighting to keep his family intact, but it’s told from the point of view of his dog. As an animal-lover I may be biased, but trust me, Enzo is positively charming.

Last but not least is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Needless to say, this isn’t the first book about World War II, and it won’t be the last, but it’s the only one I know of that’s narrated by Death. Yes, the Grim Reaper himself. And oh what an interesting view he has…


As a reader/writer, I’m wondering: Do y’all know any other good books that are told from an unusual perspective? (Any YA books? Interestingly, The Book Thief is marketed as YA in America but adult fiction in its native Australia.)

As a fellow human being, I say: Take a good look at the world around you, and try to see it through someone else’s eyes.

KH