Read it- it's far better than the movie
347929
WOW - I'm totally blowen away by the amount of sacrifice the shooters go through to keep us safe, Read it- it's far better than the movie.
2220634
I had seen the film and been a big fan of it for years when my brother suggested I join the world of the literate and read the book. Sometimes reading a book after you've seen its big screen adaptation can present problems--it could be hard, for example, to shake the image of John Cusack in a Chicago record store when the book takes place in the UK. But there were no such issues when reading High Fidelity. While there were definitely moments when the movie popped into my mind (mostly noting differences between the two), the novel was engrossing and extremely entertaining without distraction.

So my review is directed at people like me who have seen and liked the movie: the book is (as the case often is) far better than an already great movie, and it's absolutely worth your time to take it in.
917383
They always say the book is better than the movie - so read this book before it becomes a hit movie !
4764167
Of course, the movie is never as good as the book, but It was still a great movie even cut down for the time constraints inflicted on movies.
Read the book first and you will understand and enjoy this movie more, because you will already have all of the important information from the reading experience.  Grambie Dunn
2824344
The book is much better than the movie. (but then books always are!!!)Be ready to hate Mason Verger!  He is a truly despicable character! You will be touched by the way Dr. Lecter interacts with Starling.  You also gain insight into Lecter's traumatic childhood, and begin to understand him. (something I wish the movie had included)It is a long book, but a page-turner.  Don't plan on getting anything else done until you finish reading this one, as it's a hard book to put down.  I also enjoyed Red Dragon, also by Thomas Harris
4911097
The book isn't necessarily better than the movie. However, the book provides a lot more detail than the movie does (which is to be expected). This is both good and bad--good because the book sometimes draws things out longer than they need to be; bad because the book allows you to know the characters better.

One of my favorite parts of this book is how Kathryn Stockett didn't remain too serious on a very serious topic. Too often people think books like this can't be funny. Stockett has a gift of knowing when to be serious and when comedy is appropriate.

Something that impressed me with this book was the character development. It's hard to think of many characters who didn't grow from the first page to the last. While some of the characters may seem over-the-top and highly exaggerated, that is part of the fun and helps place emphasis on each individual's growth.

If you are planning on seeing the movie, make reading this first a priority--they are the perfect match for each other.
3257551
Read this after watching the movie based on it. Better than the movie.
2015119
Much better than the movie; I found that I could not put it down. With all the stuff they did in development, it's a wonder they didn't kill themselves.
3374899
The first-person narrative used here is wonderful.  I read this long before the movie was made, and absolutely loved it.  Although the movie was well done, there is so much more to the book that it is worth reading even if you've seen the movie.
1097650
I have always loved the movie, and was very curious when I heard there was a novelization of it written by the man who wrote the screenplay of the film. I had heard that it was far superior to the movie, going into a lot more detail and character development than the film could afford.

And so...I made it my mission to get my hands on said book.

I was not disappointed.

It really does go into a lot more detail, and is much more fleshed out.  And in the end, I ended up loving this novel so much more than the movie itself...that I rarely watch the movie anymore, and simply read the book instead (I still love the movie, and still think it was fantastic).

If you're curious about this novelization, then don't hesitate to get a copy.  It's well worth it!
1089475
Wow.  Per usual it was better than the movie.  Although there were so many differences it can't really be considered the same.  Go for the book.
3957903
I've read the book after watching the movie (repeatedly for, um, scientific purposes), and I still enjoyed reading it. It only differs from the movie in minor details, some scenes are different, but that's because there are things that read better, and others that look better on film. But the main plot is the same that makes this story so important: about being who we are, and not what we are expected to be. And it's not only about sexuality, but also about all those expectations pressuring us being it family, religion or politics. The world would be a better place if people were brave and smart enough to make those decisions the charters in this book make.
1760056
As compared to the movie, this one has a lot more details and book is still better than the movie
1243183
So much better than the movie. The movie was good yes, but the book is perfect.
1553941
i saw the movie first and loved it. but that biased me when i read the book because so many things were drastically different. but i would say since the book possesses far more detail and intricacies than the movie, and you are privy to the thoughts of both norah and nick, the book is slightly better. but one should certainly read/watch both.
2364460
If you've seen the movie, please, please, please read the book! If you have not seen the film, read the book instead. Cunningham's charactars are real and interesting, and even when they disappoint you, you want to know them better. Though this book examines the meaning of family and explores alternatives, it neither paints an idealized portrait of "traditional" heterosexual families nor presents experimental forms as the easy way out. The gay man/bisexual man/straight woman/child composition of family, though it sounds far-fetched, is exactly fitting for these characters. Still, it does not fully satisfy them. And though we're surprised and disappointed at some of the choices made by the characters, they make perfect sense as we consider the inner lives of the individuals making them. I think the omission of Erich's character from the movie took away from the power of the relationship between Bobby and Jonathan. In the book, their life together in the house caring for Jonathan's sick ex-lover provided some of the most emotionally resonant moments in the whole novel. Just as they had in their adolescence, they ended up only with each other, and somehow in this home at the end of the world, it was almost, though not quite, enough. Some of Cunningham's emotional insight is so empathic that you'll find yourself aching from the truth of it. Don't miss this read.
3984454
MUCH better than the movie, this book definitely lives up to that old cliche. If the movie developed as much as this book, it would have been far better (not that it was that bad to begin with). The timeframes are a little different int he book than the movie. I saw the movie first, so it was hard to shake memories of the movie characters in my mind's eye. This was my first entry into the Swagger series, and I'm looking forward to reading more.