Top Ten Book To Movie Adaptations I'm Looking Forward To or I Still Need To Watch

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic is "Top Ten Book To Movie Adaptations I'm Looking Forward To or Ten Book To Movie Adaptations I Still Need To Watch". I decided to do both!


Top Four Book To Movie Adaptations I Still Need To Watch:

1) Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

2) The Hunger Games - Mockingjay Part 1

3) Insurgent

4) The Scorch Trials

Top Six Book To Movie Adaptations I'm Looking Forward To:

1) Me Before You

I'm probably most looking forward to this one! I read the book years ago but the story still grips me. Also, an amazing cast!

2) Black (directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah)

This is a Belgian movie adapted from a Belgian book Black written by Dirk Bracke. I read the book when it came out and I absolutely loved it! Can't wait to see the movie! The movie is in French and if you get to chance to see it, I don't think you will regret it!

3) Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

4) Deadpool

5) Suicide Squad

6) Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Which book to movie adaptations are on your list? Leave a comment down below!

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 debut authors whose sophomore novels we're looking forward to

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic is 10 debut authors whose sophomore novels we're looking forward to or Top Ten Sophomore Novels That We Loved Just As Much If Not More Than The Author's Debut. I decided to do both because I couldn't come up with ten books in one category. 

7 debut authors whose sophomore novels I'm looking forward to: 

1. Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

I really liked Cruel Beauty! I'm waiting for Crimson Bound to come out in paperback but I'm considering buying it in hardback after all! Read my review of Cruel Beauty here!

2. The Duff by Kody Keplinger

I really liked this book, it is one of the best books I read last year! Read my review here!

3. The Martian by Andy Weir

This is easily one of my favourite books this year! You can find my review here!

4. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

I really liked this fantasy novel, I own the second book but I haven't found the time to read it yet. You can find my review of The Lies of Locke Lamora here!

5. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

 

6. Carrie by Stephen King

You can find my review here.

7. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

3 Sophomore Novels That Were Better Than The Author's Debut 

1. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

All the books in this series just get better and better! Winter is also my most anticipated book of the year, and I can't believe I don't have to wait much longer till it's released! Read my series review here.

2. Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

The first book in this trilogy was okay, not great but okay. The second book was way better and the third book was the best! Read my review of the trilogy here!

3. Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me didn't impress me much, I only continued the trilogy because I owned all the books already. I did like the other books way more, so that's why I decided to put Unravel Me on this list. Find my series review here!

Which books are on your list? Don't hesitate to leave a comment!

November TBR

This is a very ambitious November TBR, I'm hoping to read at least half of them, so without further ado, I will reveal my November TBR.

1. Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb

2. Four by Veronica Roth

First of all, I started reading Assassin's Apprentice in the beginning of October, however, with all the books I was required to read for university, I wasn't able to finish it. I hope to finish this one early on in November, though.

Four by Veronica Roth is a loan from a friend, so I need to read it so I can return it. I was also hoping to read it in October but the universe had other plans for me.

I did get till page 282 in Assassin's Apprentice, so it shouldn't take me too long to finish it.

3. Cockroach by Rawi Hage

4. Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald

The next two, I'm also required to read for my Canadian Literature class, so far I've already started Cockroach (I'm currently at page 114), and I need to finish it before the fifth of November, so that won't be a problem.

Fall on Your Knees, is a very long book and I don't really know what it is about, so I'm hoping I will like it because otherwise it will undoubtedly cause another reading slump. I need to finish this one before the 26th of November, and I will finish it!

5. Winter by Marissa Meyer

I've pre-ordered Winter, so I hope I will find myself reading this one quite soon! So excited! But also sad that this will be the last book in the series...

6. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo 

7. The Sin Eater's Daughter by Melinda Salisbury

I actually really wanted to start reading Shadow and Bone when it arrived in the mail, however, I thought I should finish the books I was reading at the time first. I can't decide if I should start this before or after reading Winter. We'll see!

The Sin Eater's Daughter is also a loan from (the same) friend, and just like Carrie, she hasn't read this one yet. I need to finish her books before the end of the year, not because she really wants them back but because I feel that I shouldn't take months to read three of her books. We don't see each other regularly but we do need to return each other's books sometime.

8. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

This one is definitely wishful thinking, however, I've been wanting to pick this one up for a while, so it might happen. I like having a lot of choices, so that's why I included this one in my November TBR.

I'm hoping to read the first five books on this list, all the rest will be a bonus!

Which books are on your TBR? Let me know down below!!

October 2015 Wrap Up

I only read five books this month. I started reading two more, which I almost finished but you will see them in my next wrap up. I had to read quite a lot for my university classes, which I do not mind all that much, however, those books put me into a little reading slump.

The first book I read this month was End of Days by Susan Ee, the third book in the Penryn and the End of Days trilogy. I really enjoyed, I think it was a right book at the right time kind of thing. I ultimately gave it 4 stars. Check out my review of the trilogy here.

Una Muchacha Muy Bella by Julian López was the second book I read this month. I had to read it in Spanish and it was horrible, I just couldn't get through it, so ultimately I decided to read the second half of the book in Dutch, and it was still horrible. I didn't like it all, especially the way the book was structured, the long sentences, and the fact that nothing really happens in the book. Not to mention the weird relationship the protagonist has with his mother. 2 stars. And I still think that's much.

The third book I read, was one I was required to read for my Canadian Literature class. So it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that it was a Margaret Atwood book. The Blind Assassin was my very first Atwood book, and it will definitely not be the last one either. I loved it! It took me the first hundred pages or so to get into the book, but after that I couldn't put it down (which was good because I finished it just in time for my class). 5 stars! I can highly recommend The Blind Assassin and Atwood won the 2000 Booker Prize for it, so what more do you need to be convinced to read it? If you want me to write a full review on The Blind Assassin, leave a comment down below!

Then I read Carrie by Stephen King, the perfect Halloween read! 4 stars! I really enjoyed it and I wrote a review on the book and a comparison of the two movies. You can check out the review here, and the comparison here!






The last book I read this month was for my literature class on Latin American contemporary authors. I needed to read this book in Spanish, but I did not have time to finish it in time, so I decided to read it in Dutch so I could at least follow the lecture. It really does feel like cheating to me. In the end I really liked the book, The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vásquez, and I gave it 4 stars. It was the best book I've read for this course so far!

Which books did you read this month? Have you read any of the books in my wrap up? Let me know down below!

Stacking the Shelves: October Book Haul

Stacking The Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews where we show the books we bought during the week.

I purchased five books this month and I'm finally going to show them to you, sorry that it took me so long! (I kind of have to say that I'm really glad with how the picture above worked out, usually my pictures don't look that awesome!)

1. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
2. Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

3. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

4. Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews
5. Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

So that was it for my October book haul! Let me know down below which books you purchased recently!

All the books mentioned on this list I bought at wordery.com.

Top Ten Tuesday: Halloween themed freebie

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's theme has to be related to Halloween. Now, I used to love scaring people on Halloween but I don't like to be scared. The only movies I don't watch are of the horror kind. I don't mind some creepiness in books but I don't like horror. It is needless to say that I don't read horror books either. However, I do have a few recommendations that are creepy but too much. And I have some books that I want to read, which might be creepy as well. Therefore I will divide this list into books I recommend and books on my tbr.

Books I recommend to read on Halloween

1. Carrie by Stephen King

I actually just finished reading Carrie last week. It was a loan from a friend, and I had to read it soon anyway so I decided it would make a good Halloween read. And I was right!

2. The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

I read this one quite a long time ago, I recently purchased it in English and I'm excited to reread this one! I absolutely love the musical but Leroux's original story is a bit different. Anyway, if you're not sure about this watch the movie first, or better yet watch the 25th anniversary version, which is absolutely the best!

3. Balefire by Cate Tiernan

There are four books in this series and they centre around witches. I loved this series as a young teenager and I actually want to reread these quite soon as well!

Creepy books on my tbr

I don't actually know if any of these books are actually creepy, but they sound creepy to me, so let's roll with it!

4. Dracula by Bram Stoker

I read many vampire books over the years but I still haven't read Dracula, therefore, I thought I couldn't really put any of the others on the list. 

5. Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

6. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

7. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

8. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

9. In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters

10. Mort by Terry Pratchett

11. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Because no Halloween list is complete without it!


Have you read any of these books? Let me know your thoughts on them down below! Which books are on your Halloween list?

Movie Adaptation Comparison: Carrie (1976) and Carrie (2013)

Carrie (1976)

Director: Brian De Palma
Stars: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, John Travolta

Nominated for two Oscars:

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Sissy Spacek 

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Piper Laurie 

Imdb.com rating: 7,4

-- Imdb.com description --


Okay, let's start with the 1976 version of Carrie. I read that the more recent one, more accurately adapted the book. However, when I started the 1976 version, I didn't think there were so many changes. That is until the last 30 minutes or so. Still, there are a lot of movie adaptations that less accurately adapt to screen. From the moment Sue Snell shows up at the prom, things start to move away from the book. All the major plot points are in the movie however and I didn't have many problems with the changes they made, which is unusual for me.

I didn't consult Imdb.com prior to watching Carrie so I didn't know the movie had been nominated for two Oscars. I can definitely see why. Sissy Spacek was an incredible Carrie! I couldn't take my eyes off her! I thought her portrayal of Carrie was very accurate. And then there is Carrie's mother, of course. Played by Piper Laurie. She was absolutely frightening!

The whole movie portrayed Stephen King's dark atmosphere very well. At this point, I haven't watch the more recent adaptation yet, but I can already wholeheartedly recommend the 1976 version!



Carrie (2013)

Director: Kimberly Peirce

Stars: Chloë Grace Moretz, Julianne Moore, Gabriella Wilde, Ansel Elgort, Judy Greer

Imdb.com rating: 6,0

-- Imdb.com description --








Okay, I've now watched both movies in a row. I'm now going to review both by comparing them to each other as well as to the original book by Stephen King. Read my review of the book here.

The first adaptation can feel dated to a young film lover. I too, felt that the special effects at times left to be desired. However, after seeing the recent adaptation, that version doesn't have the greatest special effects either (especially at the prom), true, these effects are more modern, so I would probably choose the second film for the special effects.

In Carrie (2013) more time was spend on exploring dialogues and motives of the other characters, like Sue Snell and Billy Nolan, which I enjoyed. Furthermore, what I really did like about the 2013 version is the fact that Carrie cares about what happened to Tommy. In both the 1976 version and the book this does not happen. This is actually what I disliked about the book, so I'm happy to see it in the movie after all.

Surprisingly, there were a lot of parallels between the two movies in the scenes that weren't in the book. It seems that the 2013 version used both the book and the 1976 movie as inspirations. Drawing elements from both of them. All the changes in the first film (which I didn't like) can be found in the second film as well, which was rather disappointing. Remember I mentioned Sue Snell showing up at prom while she didn't in the book? Well, suddenly she showed up in the second film as well, and it went in exactly the same way as the 1976 version. To be honest, after that, the whole ending was mostly the same as the first movie, even down to the details. Some elements from the book did make it there, but it was mixed with some new (and stupid) material. I don't really get why they would follow the first movie more than the actual book. If you're going to adapt a book why would you keep the same changes in the movie as the first one did? What is the point, then, of the remake?

All in all, the first movie is obviously the best, even though it might feel a bit dated. I feel the story works better in the 1976 version. The recent version is a modern update of the story but feels less real to me than the first one. The first movie portrayed the atmosphere of the story so well, the second one wasn't even half as good. And to be honest, nobody will ever best Sissy Spacek's performance as Carrie. She was so believable. Chloë Grace Moretz didn't even come close to be a competitor, even a minor one. I can really believe, Spacek's character is the victim of abuse and bullying, but I have a harder time believing that of Chloë Grace Moretz's portrayal. And to me, her Carrie looks too much like the movie star.

Carrie (2013) attempts to give Stephen King's story a modern update, however, it doesn't work for me. By giving it a modern update, it loses a lot of its believability and spookiness. I'm mean, it's hard to believe that Carrie would not have been educated at school about menstruation, I can understand that her mom would not have told her because she is a religious nut, but I fail to understand how things like would never have been discussed in school. Also, adding social media and cell phones didn't really work for me. I would have liked it better if the recent film was set in the same time period as the book and the 1976 film. But since the second film draws so much on the previous film, it probably would have ended up as the same movie entirely.

So, if you're still reading this after all this rambling, here is my verdict: the book of course is the best, followed closely by Carrie (1976) and lastly, (far behind the others) is the 2013 version of Carrie. The Imdb.com ratings for both movies are correct. I will add though, that lately if I watch a movie adaptation of a book I've read, I don't enjoy the film as much. This was not true in this case. If you don't want to read the book, I recommend the 1976 version of Carrie! You won't regret it!