4 Favorite Books Told From Multiple Points of View

Books that tell the story from multiple points of view can sometimes give so much more than if we see it from the eyes of a single person – when done well! When it’s not, then it’s a confusing mess. We have shared in the past 4 Favorite Multiple Point of View AudioBooks, and now, here are 4 more awesome multi-POV books that I’m encouraging you to add to your reading list.

The Vanishing Half, Brit Bennett

The Vanishing Half has a captivating plot, characters that will pull you into their lives and just enough drama to keep you wondering what will happen next. The story follows the Vignes twin sisters who grow up together in a small, southern black community. Ten years after running away at age sixteen, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Bennett gets you into the sisters heads and how they choices have shaped them, altered their outlook on life, as well as how they raise their children. There’s so much more to this book – it’s a deep, complex story that you will not regret picking up. See also – 3 Fiction Books by Black Authors To Add to Your Book Club Reading List.

One of Us is Next, Karen McManus

Every now and again Kim and I read the same book and we have opposite opinions – this is one of those books. I love One of Us is Next, but Kim couldn’t get into it. I’m generally not into contemporary books that feature teenagers, but McManus does a fantastic job of giving us different types of characters, really getting us into their heads with the different points of view, and also a plot that’s a touch crazy – but just crazy enough so that it’s believable that teenagers would do something like that. The characters actually sound like teenagers, complete with all the insecurities and struggles. This book is a follow-up to One of Us is Lying and I would say you should read the first book before this one – although it’s not strictly necessary.

Come on, Bayview High, you know you’ve missed this. A ton of copycat gossip apps have popped up since Simon died, but in the year since the Bayview four were cleared of his shocking death, no one’s been able to fill the gossip void quite like he could. The problem is no one has the facts. Until now. This time it’s not an app, though – it’s a game. Truth or Dare. Phoebe’s the first target. If you choose not to play, it’s a truth. And hers is dark. Then comes Maeve and she should know better – always choose the dare. But by the time Knox is about to be tagged, things have gotten dangerous. The dares have become deadly, and if Maeve learned anything from Bronwyn last year, it’s that they can’t count on the police for help. Or protection.

Anxious People, Fredrik Backman

Looking at real estate isn’t usually a life-or-death situation, but an apartment open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes a group of strangers hostage.

Anxious People is all about quirky characters and the thin line that can send us over the edge into bad decision making, complicated relationships and … well, it’s about messiness. Life is messy, people are messy, circumstances get messy and Backman delivers with a book that is well written, almost completely character driven (he’s so good at this), with humor and just have us rooting for giving someone a second chance.

Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty

Madeline is funny and biting, passionate, she remembers everything and forgives no one. Celeste is the kind of beautiful woman who makes the world stop and stare. New to town, single mom Jane is so young that another mother mistakes her for the nanny. While Madeline and Celeste soon take Jane under their wing, none of them realizes how the arrival of Jane and her inscrutable little boy will affect them all.

On the surface, Big Little Lies is about a group of parents in an Australian suburb whose children are starting kindergarten. There are the typical cliques, working moms against stay at home moms and over-parenting. It’s funny and seemingly light and airy … but under the surface were other layers. The author tackles many issues like bullying and spousal abuse and she does a phenomenal job of getting us in the story and investing in the characters and their little … big … hidden secrets. Have you seen the HBO TV series yet?

What are some of your favorite multi-POV books? Have you read any of those mentioned above?