Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

there's a book for that

There’s a book for that: The Princess Bride

Inconceivable!

The Princess Bride is hands-down my favorite movie. I can’t explain why and you don’t have to agree with me. It’s just the way it is. So it was totally and in all other ways “inconceivable” to me that I could love anything more. But I do!

The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure by William Goldman is pure genius. I couldn’t put it down even though I’ve seen the movie a hundred times (probably more). I was almost berating myself for not having ever read it before. It’s soon to become part of my permanent library. (I borrowed it from the library for this reading.)

Everything I love about the movie I now love more because of the book. I was surprised, pleasantly, to discover that the movie doesn’t deviate in horrible ways from the book. From a production standpoint, I understand why some things were left out or moved around. On the whole, though, I am in love with this story all over again.

I’m sure you can’t tell, right?

I only know a handful of people who don’t like the movie, (I won’t name names, but Nikki, you’re the first one that comes to mind!) so if that’s you, give the book a whirl and see what you think. And if you are, like me, a devotee (my husband made his “move” to indicate he liked me during a showing of this movie adding to many reasons why I love it) and you haven’t read the book, then all I have to say is “WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?” Sorry for shouting.

Am I overselling it? Tell me what you think if you’ve read Goldman’s book.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this project, too. (If you missed last week, I gave my thoughts on Mary Poppins, the book.) What’s your favorite book-to-movie adaptation? Are you a strict book first, movie second kind of person? What treasures have you discovered on the bookshelves  in regards to books turned into movies?

Next week: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum.

There’s a book for that: Mary Poppins

A couple of months ago, our 4-year-old got to watch Mary Poppins for the first time. We decided after our trip to Disney, we needed to give her more opportunities to watch the movies we loved as kids. (No pressure to like them, right? I can’t wait to find out how she likes Pete’s Dragon.) So, her reward for having accident-free weeks potty-wise is her choice of Disney movie for a movie night. (Don’t worry, we’re borrowing them from the library. Our budget doesn’t include a line item for unlimited Disney movies. Wouldn’t that be nice!) One of her first picks was Mary Poppins.

Isabelle got to meet her at Disney.

They talked hats, an appropriate subject among ladies.

I’m pleased to say she loved every minute of the movie.

I, on the other hand, was shocked to discover that Mary Poppins had a life before Walt Disney. The movie is based on books written by P.L. Travers. A book, you say? It was almost all I could think about while we watched the movie. My husband dutifully googled the author and we learned a little bit about her and her dislike for the movie adaptation. (Reportedly, this is the basis for another movie, called Saving Mr. Banks, starring Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson. I’m in.)

Making blockbuster movies from bestselling novels is commonplace in the movie industry these days. It’s unusual, at least among the movies I watch, to find a movie written by a team of screenwriters and not “based on the book by …” I guess I didn’t think about this happening in the earlier days of film.

Needless to say, I went to the library soon after we watched the movie and checked out Mary Poppins, the book, by P.L. Travers.

I sort of loved it.

I mean, it’s different. Mary Poppins the character isn’t as likable in the book as she is in the movie, but the stories, especially the ones that didn’t make the movie, are entertaining and enjoyable. Maybe what I liked best about the book is that the things that make Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins so great — like Uncle Albert’s laughing fit or Mary Poppins arriving on an East Wind — were Travers’ idea first. I thought Walt Disney was the creative genius. And he was, in a sense, making it come to life on film. But as a writer, I appreciate the writer behind the on-screen creativity.

So, that made me wonder what other treasures I’d find in the books that became movies we love. Come back on Fridays this month (June) for the series “There’s a book for that.” Next week, The Princess Bride.

FROM ONE MARY TO ANOTHER: Last week, as the finale to Free Book Fridays in May, I offered Unveiling Mary Magdalene by Liz Curtis Higgs. And the winner is: Ladette Kerr! Ladette is a two-time winner for Free Book Fridays. Congratulations! I’ll have your books in the mail in the next couple of days.