Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

The book “Me Earl and the Dying Girl” was released on Mar. 1, 2012. The book is about the main character, Greg, being forced by his mom to rekindle a friendship with a girl named Rachel, who is going through leukemia treatment. After she stops treatment, Greg and his friend Earl make a film for Rachel which turns out to be, “The Worst Film Ever Made,” which causes Greg to step out into the spotlight that he has always been avoiding. The movie adaptation was released on Jan. 25, 2015 and does a good job of including all the necessary details and more. Greg is portrayed differently, he is a lot more compassionate and nicer towards Rachel and the people around him. The movie also conveys a lot more emotion which makes for a more heart-wrenching ending, along with this the relationships in the book seem a lot more surface-level because it’s only from Greg’s perspective, whereas in the movie the three of them all seem to have a deeper connection.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules by Jeff Kinney

“Diary of the Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules” was released on Feb. 1, 2008 and is the second book in the Diary of the Wimpy Kid series. The book is about Greg’s troubled relationship with his brother (Rodrick) and how they end up becoming pals. The movie adaptation was released Mar. 25, 2011 and is highly simliar to the book. The movie does add a few details and scenes but this only elevates the movie and makes for a hilarious comedy. Both the book and movie are really entertaining and while most books tend to have a better storyline, the way Greg and Rodrerick bond throughout the adaptation makes for a great movie to watch and is shown in a special way that the book did not capture. 

Life of Pi by Yann Martel 

The book “Life of Pi” was released Sep. 11, 2001. It goes into dense thematic concepts such as existentialism and religion. Pi is stranded at sea with a few wild animals and goes through strange experiences following the journey of his survival. The movie was later released on Nov. 21, 2012, the adaptation does a good job of including most of the thematic concepts but does leave out some parts that are essential to the story and make it more interesting. The high amount of detail in the book may seem a bit boring at times but the movie does a good job at summing it up.  

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky

The book “Perks of Being a Wallflower” was released on Feb. 1, 1999 and is about a boy named Charlie who struggles with trauma from his childhood and is now in his high school years figuring out who he is. He makes a good group of friends along the way which helps him develop his social skills and navigate through his relationships. The movie adaptation was later made on Sep. 21, 2012, despite a few details left out, the movie does a good job of not altering the story and resembling the important storyline of the book. The book is known to have an emotional feel and goes into difficult subjects still seen in the movie but doesn’t go as in-depth. 

Twilight (The Twilight Saga, #1) by Stephanie Meyer

The first Twilight book was released Oct. 5, 2005 and is about a girl named Bella Swan who falls in love with a vampire, Edward Cullen and the struggles that come with this. The movie adaptation was later made on Nov. 28, 2008, and the series are all known for being embarrassingly cheesy while the book is known for being better than the movie. In the book, the reader finds out about Edward’s secret (being a vampire) in a more gradual way and more details are included which makes Edward seem less strange. On the other hand in the movie, his secret is brought up more dramatically and can be seen as cringey and strange. The book has specific details that make the characters more understandable and the reader can comprehend and be more empathetic towards them and the whole concept of “Twilight”.