Book or Movie? 

Depending on if you are a book worm and have a bright imagination or prefer to have the images pop out on a television screen. You’ve heard the saying, “The book is always better than the movie,” but it all comes down to how well the author can craft and stick words together and adding well-known actors can also shift your opinion to the other direction. 

Everything Everything 

The beautiful story of a world where 18-year-old Madeline Whittier is trapped in a bubble. The bubble of the same four walls and a bright outside she will never meet. Madeline is sick and cannot go outside, she does not breathe the same crisp air as others her age. Things begin to change when a gorgeous young boy Olly moves into the vacant house next door.  

Book 

Upon reading the book you are faced with a light, floral cover. The book focuses on the description of Madeline’s home and how she seems to roam and stare out the giant windows that are described. Due to her severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) she does not seem to know a whole lot about, she can only daydream about the bright blue ocean in Hawaii. In the book her relationship with Olly is more focused digitally. They communicate through texts and phone calls. The book does still have the same twist as the movie, one day Madeline invites Olly over to finally break the bubble and get to meet the boy she glared at through the thick glass window. The story adds in more detail and a fun filler is added when Madeline is taking a risk to go see Olly and the two of them lay on the roof which the film does not include. 

Movie 

The perfect teen romance film stars actors such as Nick Robinson who plays the character Olly, and Amandla Stenberg playing Madeline. Stenberg is also portrayed in films such The Hate U Give, and Dear Evan Hanson. Her acting in the movie is beyond incredible and really gives the viewers a glimpse of what it would be like to deal with this disease every day for the rest of your life. Her rebellion in the movie adds a great amount of action and suspense. Her dream of getting away and running off to Hawaii happened with a little bit of courage and rage. The love between the two characters build as the story continues when they have their meeting in the living room of Madeline’s house and their very cute exchange of signs through the window. Olly is very protective of Maddy and tries to force her back into her house when she bolts outside to surprise him. The movie also follows a very strong lesson of taking risks, you only have one life, live it. 

The Notebook 

This classic story goes through a time of love for Allie and Noah. The beautiful scenery described in the book and also shown in the movie shows how love can really end up. The pair run through life with their innocent love, the one difference between them is their income. Noah is not as wealthy as his dream girl Allie, why should it matter? They are just two young teens falling in love. Battles over money eventually cause a large rift in their relationship but there is no end to them. 

Book 

The story begins with the narrator, who is Noah giving a brief overview of the main topic. The LOVE between Noah and Allie! While the book is very similar to the film there are a few differences to point out: 

-In the book the author Nicholas Sparks takes two scenes from the book that create the iconic “365 letters” speech in the movie. (Noah tells Allie that he was never ignoring her when they split, he wrote a letter every day for a whole year.) 

-The book gives a thorough description of Allies fiancé Lon Hammond, where as the movie mentions that they are going to get married (due to their parents being extremely wealthy.) 

Movie 

The movie follows the couple and how they met, Noah had shied away from Allie due to her status being a gorgeous girl in a small town. He proceeded to grab Allie’s attention running up and gripping onto a Ferris wheel, “Will you go out with me?” Noah questioned. Allie pushed him away repeating the word “No.” But Noah knew he wasn’t going to let her slip away from him that fast. He continues to heighten the stake of them going out by holding on by one arm and having Allie scream “I want to go out with you.” 

Noah eventually goes out with Allie, she is annoyed with the fact that she initially did not want to go out with him, it feels set up. When they share a dance in an empty road the feelings begin to change, they live their lives as two teens who fall into a deep and at times complicated love spiral. Noah gets looks from Allies family due to his work situation and the amount he makes, she knows that money is not what makes her happy. The couple split for the time being while Noah goes and fights in WWII. He writes to Allie for 365 days (same as the book,) the only difference is the movie shows the pair on a boat when Allie reunites with him to say hello. She is engaged at the time she discovers Noah on the front cover of a magazine standing in front of the house he planned to repair and create for him and Allie. Their love continues to grow even with Allie being engaged to Lon, she confesses to him that she saw Noah and it ended up not being the reason she intentionally discussed with him. Allie is now in the mix of things, packing her bags and heading to the person she calls home.  

The end of the movie is what makes you run and grab a box of tissues for. The scene shows Noah old in a retirement home in search of Allie, but Allie suffers from Alzheimer disease making it difficult to remember the man she loved, after terror reaches her eyes due to her lack of understanding that Noah is not a random person and is her husband. When all settles, he is able to sneak past the nurses and slowly waltzes in her room. They eventually pass away peacefully together interlocking hands. 

All The Bright Places  

Violet Markey is mourning the death of her sister Eleanor, staying far away from people, school, and school projects. But this time she cannot wiggle her way out of this assignment, “The Wanders of Indiana.” But when Theodore Finch asks to partner up, she shuts him down, but a little convincing and opening up about her sister brought the two closer together. Finch does not reveal that he has a dark past too, this innocent walking man may not be so innocent after all.  

Book 

The movie and the book do have very similar qualities and only just a few differences, the book lays out the story well, describing Violets’ emotions on the topic of her sisters death. 

The beginning of the book discusses Violet standing on top of the bell tower at her school and Finch tags along, but due to his past the school spreads rumors that Violet had saved him from ending his life.  

Near the end of the book, it discusses Violet searching for Finch after he went M.I.A. His friends claim it happens a lot and they never truly know where he goes when he gets into his “moods.” She goes to the one wander that they constantly went back to, picking up articles of clothes Finch had left behind, “MARCO,” she screamed (Her and Finch played Marco polo one day when they went swimming.) She realizes that he had followed through with the things he had secretly hid, he hid all the pain from her in order for her to not worry, he did not want the label that the whole school calls him, “Freak,” they would all scream. 

Movie 

This film captures the beautiful places they discover but also the beginning of a new chapter in their lives. Healing together, mourning the loss of themselves as life continued, but Violet becomes attached to the person she became when she met Finch. The title of the film is discussed at the end, Violet had discovered all these places with Finch and made the dull shoe tree, or the broken-down rollercoaster seem bright and beautiful. Each spot they visited was one of the “bright places.” 

In film making the directors tie the movie together with bits and pieces that readers really enjoyed. Movies can add a lot to the readers mind when they finally are shown what the filmmakers had imagined. Books give an infinite world of endings, twists and turns. Movies can snag some of the twists and make it go in another direction. If there is a book you read and ever wonder what the movie may be like keep in mind the parts that made you laugh, and cry, you may just see it on the big screen.