Why wouldn't Five Days be the same story if it were told from Richard's point of view?

Why wouldn't Five Days be the same story if it were told from Richard's point of view? Does Douglas Kennedy accurately capture the voice of Laura?

Five Days would not be the same story if told from Richard's point of view, because his life returned to normal. He went and had a weekend, met a woman, had an affair, and then returned to life like nothing happened. He went back to his old job he wasn't happy with, his old wife he wasn't happy with, and didn't tell anybody about the affair or make any changes to his life. He even left behind his new jacket and glasses to wear his old attire back to his old life.

Laura, on the other hand, left that weekend and used the happenings to transform the rest of her life. She told her husband she wasn't happy, admitted to the affair, and got a divorce. She told her friends and children about the relationship. She got a new apartment, changed jobs to earn more money, and even picked up running as a hobby and form of relaxation.

If the story were told from Richard's viewpoint, I hope he would be a more interesting man. He is very one-dimensional as told.

Personally, I wouldn't have read Richard's story

I'm not so sure that Richard didn't always have a plan for an affair and said the right things to lure Laura into the weekend fling.

I agree with terriej, I think Richard was obviously just using Laura. He knew from past experience he wasn't going to leave his "life". I don't see how Richard's story would have held anyone's interest. I read this story, Laura's, in one sitting.

May I ask, what would the story be if it were told from Dan's point of view? Obviously, the point of view -- Richard's or Dan's would be a different novel. I am not convinced that the novel could not have been better if told from various points of view. But it would not have been this book. I found this novel very approachable (I read it through in a short time), if not, totally satisfying. It did, however, make me think about relationships, sacrifice, commitment, and where one turns to find quality of life. That is no small achievement for a book.

No way. Richard was actually uninteresting. His story would be about a whine-y man who didn't like his life and didn't have the guts to change it.

Navy Mom, you described Richard perfectly.

I agree with Rebajane. I would not have found him interesting. He was not a risk taker.

Let's be honest here. If Laura's name were actually Richard and Richard's name Laura, wouldn't it be the same story? Meaning that Richard would have the life of Laura and the story would have the same outcome.