To Read or Not To Read

After many years of reflection, I find that I enjoy watching book-to-movie adaptations, and that I rarely find them disagreeable. There are, of course, some obvious exceptions (that Percy Jackson movie trilogy, for example), but for the most part, book-to-movie adaptations do well to please the masses. While I agree generally with the statement "the book is always better than the movie," I think that faithful adaptations are actually just as good, if not equal, to the book itself. I will argue that stance in this case, the book-to-movie adaptation of  Emma  by Jane Austen, directed into the 2020 film by Autumn de Wilde.  Emma was the last of Jane Austen's novels to be published during her lifetime, and has been described as a comedy of manners. This film took that comedy and heightened it for general audience pleasure -- but the filmmakers didn't leave behind Austen's meaningful commentary. Filmmakers blended choices regarding character, lighting, and cos...

Published in 2015, Jennifer Niven's young adult debut novel All the Bright Places has made a huge impact on the lives of all its readers. This novel, which has many awards and honors attached to it, is one of the first that rawly and honestly depicted the struggles of mental health. Fans of the novel have taken it with them throughout the years, and it was the beginning of granting visibility to those who have been left out of young adult literature before. Now, we get to see that visibility come to life in the Netflix adaptation. Released in 2020, "All the Bright Places" is the story of Finch and Violet, but transformed. But what is the verdict? Is the book better than the movie? Read on for my thoughts, and, at the end, my verdict! Jennifer Niven is the Emmy Award-winning #1 New York Times and international bestselling author of nine books, including All the Bright Places and Holding up the Universe . Her books have been translated in over 75 languages, and All the Br...

Published in 2005, John Green's debut novel Looking for Alaska  has always made waves. With nine accolades, including being the winner of the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award, Looking for Alaska  has set the bar high for young adult fiction. Fans of the novel have watched as other John Green book were published and accordingly turned into films--most notably, The Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns . Finally, Looking for Alaska  has got the adaptation it deserved. In October 2019, Hulu released an eight-episode adaptation of the same name. But what's the verdict? Is the book better than the TV show here? Read on for my thoughts, and, at the end, my verdict! John Green is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines, Paper Towns, The Fault in Our Stars, and Turtles All the Way Down . He is also the coauthor, with David Levithan, of Will Grayson, Will Grayson. He was the 2006 recipient of the Michael L. Printz Award, a 2009 Edgar A...

Chawton might be a sleepy little village town, but don't let that fool you. Its people are full of ambition, fame, and determination. And the one common thread that pulls a whole cast of them together is none other than Jane Austen. In Natalie Jenner's debut, a cast of disparate individuals band together to form the Jane Austen Society as a way to connect over the triumphs and to recuperate from the tragedies of life. A beautiful, poignant, and necessary study in loss, legacy, and literature, The Jane Austen Society is an eye-opening, breathtaking and heartrending read.  Natalie Jenner was born in England, raised in Canada, and graduated from the University of Toronto with degrees in English literature and law. She worked for decades in the legal industry and also founded the independent bookstore Archetype Books in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs. You can find Natalie Jenner at her website, nataliejenner.com . Just after the Second Worl...

It's easy to fall into the trap of reading historical fiction where the history propels the characters. In this critically acclaimed novel about the postwar struggles of Spain, the characters take control of the world they're living in, while also being run by the silence that world demands of them. Enter into Madrid, 1957, where silence is the norm, and censorship demands that the true story never be told. But also, welcome a photojournalist who doesn't care about those rules, and a girl who is fed up with keeping secrets. Ruta Sepetys once again crafts a beautiful, heartbreaking portrait of a Spain still struggling after the Spanish Civil War, with characters who continue to inspire long after the pages are closed, and with a rallying cry to never forget those who might not even know who or what they are.  Ruta Sepetys is an internationally acclaimed, #1 New York Times bestselling author of historical fiction published in over sixty countries and forty languages. Sepety...