I said I was going to read the Hunger Games last week, since I had finally seen the movie. And read it I did – pretty much all in one sitting, on Wednesday, home with Brianna while she was sick.
It. was. awesome.
I love how watching a movie before reading the book gives me a good overall top level view of the story – and make me appreciate all the details and back story and other things they have to cut out of a movie, almost like I’m rereading the book. I think this will be my preferred method of reading books that are movies now – and since I’m like, 5 years behind in my reading, that actually works out pretty well for me. (we’ll ignore the fact that I’m still for the most part 2 years behind on my movie watching).
So, I loved how book-Katniss was a little more in the game than movie-Katniss. And ever so slightly more calculating – and at the same time more confused. She was just pretty much more everything in the book, really. And I liked having more details about her and Gale, as that part of the movie was really fuzzy for me – and her history with Peeta, only told in the movie through one scene that we kept going back to.
I actually liked Peeta more in the book, too – he seemed stronger (as a person), and more good, all around. And his feelings for Katniss seemed more real, and less planned.
And that is why I like books more than movies. Because although a good movie can move you and make you feel for the characters, a good book can do so much more – by being in the character’s heads, you an actually be them, feel what they are feeling, and really immerse yourself in the story – making books so much more real to me than movies. The fact that I now have actor faces for each character and don’t have to think of what they might look like? A bonus, for me.
In short, I think the book was awesome, and having gone from movie to book – I think the movie was actually a pretty good adaptation. I’d like them to make the sequels, but I might feel differently about the movie adaptations of those because:
I borrowed Catching Fire, via Kindle, from my cousin. And she’s sending me Mocking Jay today, because I read the second book all in one sitting as well. Because movies? They take years to produce. And I want to know what happens, now.