The Movie was Just as Good as the Book

So often films and television shows cannot live up to the books from which they are derived. Lately though, I have read a few novels that translated into home-run screen viewings. The genres varied, but one thing all of my reviews below have in common is that the reproductions to the silver screen followed the original plots. This is huge!

Bookworms and moviegoers alike should love this short-list. Keep reading to see my top three faves.

Water for Elephants

I resisted reading this book because I do not like the circus. What can I say? I am not a fan of clowns. The plot for Water for Elephants is based on a young man and his experience as an animal doctor for a traveling circus. The book and the movie (featuring Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson) had both been out for awhile before I gave them my attention, but once I started reading, I could not wait to see the film.

The novel is written by Sara Gruen and fun fact…she wrote it during NaNoWriMo! The same national writing experience that Tessa and I were a part of this past November. Water for Elephants is a romantic story with dark drama. It starts in the present, but quickly enters the past of the 1940s as Jacob Jankowski abandons vet school and finds himself on a circus train.

Jankowski’s bond with the animals and infatuation with the circus’s main star (Marlena) makes for complications as he tries to understand his boss. The circus director is mentally ill, prone to rage, an animal caretaker, and also married to Marlena. The history of the time, coupled with great characters, and so many metaphors made this a different, yet great read for me.

The biggest variation between the book and movie is that the film did away with the ringmaster character and gave those duties to Marlena’s husband August. This adjustment may seem huge, but it worked well in the film as August was a big personality.

Stream this movie and read this book in whatever order, because both avenues offer entertainment.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

Chic lit, young adult, whatever you want to call it…this trilogy by Jenny Han is adorable, smart, and so worth the read. The Netflix original movie is equally awesome. I actually watched the film first because it kept getting advertised on my Facebook feed, only to realize later that it was based on a novel.

Some characters find a place in reader’s hearts and minds. Lara Jean Song Covey is one of those characters. She is wholesome and demure throughout a three book series that starts with To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. She is an old soul in a teenager’s body. Lara Jean is part-Korean and the author introduced subtle biracial struggles that made me appreciate another perspective. For example, when Lara Jean dresses up for Halloween as a non-Asian character, everyone just assumes she is a manga comic book hero.   

Young love is the common theme in Han’s series, but it has an honesty and vulnerability to it that is like an old John Hughes film (ie: Pretty in Pink, Breakfast Club, etc.). For younger Footnote fans, viewers of the first season of Awkward on MTV could also see parallels.

The Netflix film is cast perfectly. Lana Condor is a young actress who was made to be Lara Jean. John Corbett as a widowed dad tugged at my heart strings. The little sister, Kitty, is played to perfection by Anna Cathcart of Odd Squad and Disney Descendants fame. I loved that I watched the film first because these actors held court in my mind as I mowed down the three books in this well written series.

Beyond romance and teen angst, Han’s story revolves around family, sisterhood, growing up, and the complications of everyday life in terms of bullying, stress, and staying true to one’s self.

Room on the Broom

Julia Donaldson wrote the cutest children’s book when she penned Room on the Broom. It is one of my favorites and I will be sad when my littlest ones stop begging for it. The illustrations by Axel Scheffler rock, and the character of the witch is so empathetic. Honestly the whole world should read this book, hold hands, and get over all of the issues that divide us.

The animated film is about thirty minutes and just as adorable as the storybook. Gillian Andersen (of X-Files fame) is the voice of the witch and there are quite a few talented European voices that bring the cat, frog, dragon, and every other creature to life vocally. It is a simple cartoon, but so funny. I loved it for the hidden dry humor of the cat. My children enjoyed it because the witch fills up her broom with a hilarious gang.

Read it. Watch it. Love it.

Movie producers should never mess with a great book unless the changes enhance the story-line. I love studios that keep the characters, the twists, and the little meaningful scenes that make a story memorable. These types of book-to-screen translations keep all of us in the audience applauding.

Anyone else have a good recommendation when it comes to stellar book adaptations for the big screen?