Oh, movie adaptations – the biggest fear or hope of a book reader. You can either get a Harry Potter experience or a City of Bones: The Mortal Instruments (a stand-alone movie of a whole series) experience. However, there are certain books that just work better as books, and those are the ones I’m going to explore today. Without further ado, let me share with you five books that you should read before watching the movie adaptation.
- The Hunger Games
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The Hunger Games is one of the best YA dystopian series of all time. It features an amazing protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, and an even better story. The movies, which I enjoy, pale in comparison to the books. I read the books first, and I highly reccomend each one. Plus, if the love triangle was your least favorite part of the movies, there’s a lot less of that in the book. Also, if you’ve never watched the movies or read the book, please change that! It really is quite good.
- Divergent
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Oh, Divergent. Your movie franchise could’ve elevated the YA dystopian world – except it didn’t. Neither, really did your books. Anyway, I have very mixed feelings about the Divergent series because the first book was so good. I feel in love with Tris Prior and Four and was fascinated by the world. However, if you, dear reader, have never read the series, skip Insurgent and Allegiant. Trust me, they’re not good and completely ruin the world-building done in Divergent. That being said, I love Tris Prior and Four, and Allegiant did them so dirty.
- Harry Potter
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While I have not read a single Harry Potter book – which is blasphemy, I know – I know the books only pale in comparison to the movies. There are a bunch of changes in the movies I have heard that should’ve definitely been included. While I can say I enjoyed the movies, I’ve heard from literally every person that read the books that I should read them. I haven’t, but that should not dissuade you from reading them. Listen to the masses and not me.
- Percy Jackson and The Olympians
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If you’ve read a single Percy Jackson book, you know that the films did the books so dirty. I’ve only read the first book – I’ve been meaning to read the others, I just haven’t – and that book was so much better than the movie (which I also enjoyed). When I first watched the movie, I didn’t understand why the fans were so outraged at the change – especially the rather unimportant detail of Annabeth’s hair color. Then, I read the first book, and I understood. Percy Jackson is way better in the book form than the movie form.
- The Princess Diaries
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For this series, I read all the books before I watched the movie series. In fact, I didn’t even know the movie was related until way later – and let me tell you, the books are way better. It is especially better than the mess that is Princess Diaries 2. Mia Thermopolis’ character growth throughout the whole series is way better than in either of the movies – so please, if you enjoy Mia’s journey, please read the books. They do her so much more justice.
Do you agree with this list? Did I forget your favorite book? Let me know in the comments below!