We are Voulhire: A New Arrival Under Great Skies: Alternating Points of view

Use this forum to discuss the October 2020 Book of the month, "We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies" by Matthew Tysz.
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Wordlessly
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Re: We are Voulhire: A New Arrival Under Great Skies: Alternating Points of view

Post by Wordlessly »

Not sure about the extra depth part but the clear distinction between Galen's first person narrative and other characters' third person narrative makes Galen's role in the story as well as the series ahead quite obvious.
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Post by TheMazeRunner »

I like that style of writing the most. I just feel that we can get the most from the plot with alternating points. I also like that Galen was pointed out as the most important character with his story told in the first person.
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Post by Iva Stoyanova »

I really enjoyed this feature of the book. It certainly adds depth and it's more interesting to the reader. We get different perspectives, and it's like we don't miss anything from the action.
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Post by Adanna Inya »

For me, the alternating narrative was perfect. The alternation between first and third-person narrative helped me understand the thought flow of the characters. I saw the city of Virko through their lens.
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Post by zainherb »

Marty_Kelly wrote: 01 Oct 2020, 01:39 Most of the story is told in the third-person point of view with the chapters alternating between different characters. Did you like this style? Do you think it added extra depth to the story?
I think the alternating perspectives is one of the unique features of the book.
It gives more depth to the characters and adds overall clarity to the story.
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Post by Sarah Schmidt »

The mix of so many characters' perspectives in such a short storytelling time gave us snapshots of a much bigger picture. It'd didn't get confusing, maybe because the characters were so different from each other. It did invite some mystery as we don't get to stay with any character long enough to understand them or really know their role in the story.
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Post by SweetSourSalty AndSpicy »

I think the first-person point of view for Galen emphasizes that he is a newcomer. The way he perceives the new environment is different from the locals. I find the style effective in making the experience more relatable for the readers. Because like Galen, the readers are also new to the Voulhire.
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Post by aimeepieterse »

This is probably my favorite style of writing from authors across different genres. I actually prefer it to all in first or third person, because it gives you a unique opportunity to get to know the characters on a deeper level, understand things from their point of view, and really entrench yourself in their world. Love it when books are written like this!
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Post by Nduthu43 »

Yes, alternate character description is a perfect way to help each of their traits stand out. The more we compare characters, the more we understand of their intents and motivations. The characters help us understand the author, as much as the author helps us understand the characters. Good approach.
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Post by pianogirl07 »

I liked the alternating point of views from third person to first person perspective. It was done smoothly since it is apparent that it is Galen's story and he was thrust into a world that he isn't that quite familiar with yet. The third person perspective for different scenes shows the upcoming conflict that he will be an unwilling participant of. There seems to be a foreshadowing already that he would play a key role but it is still unclear what kind of role. I have my theories but I don't know yet if there is a section for that in this forum.
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Post by Kansas City Teacher »

a_r_egerton wrote: 01 Oct 2020, 15:32 I like the alternating viewpoints, too. Since Galen is so new to Voulhire, he's limited in what he can tell us about it. He's certainly not going to know anything about the politics or the government. Adding chapters told from the perspective of characters like Lord Eldus or King Wilhelm help rectify that lack.
Very good observation about being new to Voulhire and not being able to describe it! I also think the third-person narration allowed for a more comprehensive background about the setting. Great comment!
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Post by Amber_joslyn »

I actually did not like this. I felt as if it was rotating between too many characters. Especially as an introductory book, I wish it would have focused on Galen and Lord Eldus. The rotating perspectives took away from the quality of the book for me.
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Post by Lost Souls world »

Yes I liked the writing style of telling story from different perspectives but I didn’t like the thing when the prospective changed suddenly it left me in confusion sometimes.
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Post by Iris Marsh »

When done well, I like having multiple viewpoints. And in this book, it was done very well :) I liked that it gave a more complete picture. Galen was so new to Voulhire that he didn't know much about the background, but it also meant he asked a lot of questions which helped me understand more about how things work in Voulhire. And then the chapters with the King and Lord Eldus gave a clearer picture of the political situation and more background of Voulhire.
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Post by reeves »

I do like the alternating point of view writing style. However, I did confused sometimes because there are SO MANY characters so I would have to go back to read the title of the chapter. But in general, I think hearing from all the perspectives definitely adds a fun little element in which the readers know more than the characters. :)
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