The Book Is Always Better

I love reading. Love it. One of my self-care strategies is to dedicate time to reading more. I haven’t read one book in 2021 so far which I suppose tells you how well I’m taking care of myself (I’m working on it!) Often times I’ll find a new series on Netflix and NOT want to watch it because I know it’s based on a book and, let’s face it, the book is always better! I love watching adaptations of books but I prefer reading the story first if I can. I don’t think there are many times that I’ll dive into a book after I’ve watched the movie or series with 2 notable exceptions recently:

Sweet Magnolias (Netflix 2020)

This had been in my que for awhile and I am so so happy I decided to dive in and have been recommending Sweet Magnolias to friends! So Southern, so funny, so sweet – and as a bonus American Pie’s Chris Klein plays a scoundrel of a dad (it’s weird how he aged and we didn’t…) I didn’t even realize it was based on a book series until the last episode when I needed to know more after the cliffhanger omg and discovered this! So – the first book is now on order and set to arrive any day now so I can dive right into this book series of 12 books total! Can’t. Wait.

The Stand – Stephen King (Amazon Prime 2021)

This is a weird one for me because, like many teenagers in the 90’s, I read The Stand for some reason. Apparently there was a TV mini-series at the time so maybe it was in the media and that created some buzz about it, I’m not sure. What I do know is that I remembered very little about it, but was eager to see it play out on screen with Alexander Skarsgard and Whoopi Goldberg among many other talented cast members. I actually liked it – despite some mixed reviews – but one theme among many of the reviews was about how much character development was lost and how much better the book is. Well then, I thought, it’s time I read it again – that’s a summer plan.

Next, here are three books I’d suggest reading ahead of watching the streaming series if you’re like me and love the detail and storytelling in a book more than on the screen. Maybe you’ve already read some of these?

You Should Have Known / The Undoing (2020 Apple TV)

Another case where I started watching the series and then discovered it was based on a book. Now that I know the ending and the who-did-it, I’m not sure it’s worth reading the book but wish I had read it first. So – if you haven’t watched The Undoing just yet, I’d definitely suggest the book (maybe someone who has read it first can share here if and why the book is always better?)

Firefly Lane (Netflix 2020)

This is a series I didn’t jump into because I had not heard any buzz about it, and am thankful that’s the case because when I learned it was based on a book I knew that was the way I wanted to go first. Katherine Heigl is in the series (people seem to love her or hate her, Grey’s Anatomy drama-influenced I think) and I am eager to check it out. But first, the book!

Behind Her Eyes (Netflix 2020)

This time I’m going to get it right and read the book before falling into the series which I almost started this week! The book itself has received some rave reviews so I can’t wait to read it (Stephen King called it “bloody brilliant”). It’s only 6 episodes on Netflix so after reading the book it should be easy to jump into the series and see it all unfold on screen. Curious to hear from others who have read the book and watched the series but I don’t want to Google that in case I run into spoilers!

To help encourage you to jump into reading for more self-care, or continue your love of reading with a little help, I’m giving away a $25 Amazon.ca gift card to one reader to shop for books!

To enter to win, just fill in your name and email address in the form below and click begin! Then just leave a comment on this post sharing your thoughts – and you’ll be in to win!