Books vs. Movies. Which are truly better? I personally believe that books are. You can never find something as good as the original. Plus, I think that all of the benefits you get from reading makes it all worth it. Whether you read the book or someone reads it to you, you're in control of what you see. Your get to drift away in the authors world and help create everything with them, because authors only describe so much. You have to put the puzzle pieces together.
1. Imagination.
When you just go out and see the movie you're showed what everything looks like, you don't get to imagine it. I think that an active imagination is so important because it helps fuel our creativity. Don't you remember growing up and playing games where you're in a whole new world? My sister and I used to use the ramps outside our house as ships. We pretended to sail across the sea as pirates and jump between "boats." We would tie up our feet in the hot tub and pretend to be mermaids. We would set up our desks and play school. They're all such fond memories because it all seemed real. I could picture the world we were living in. The ground became water; the bubbles became waves, my bedroom turned into a classroom. Your imagination can do incredible things if you let it. Reading helps to keep it strong. I think it's amazing when I'm sitting in my room alone and it becomes a new place as I enter the story and watch the characters. I think it's amazing that by just using a few simple words my mind can create a whole person. I know reading can take a while and that some may think it's boring, but it is so worth it in the end if you just fall into the story. Give it a chance.
2. Movies Leave Stuff Out.
You obviously can't get every detail of an entire novel into a roughly 2 hour time frame. So in turn, compromises have to be made, and scenes have to be cut. You want to see the whole story and learn everything you can. I'll be honest, had I not read the Hunger Games series I wouldn't have known why Gale calls Katniss 'Catnip.' Plus it changed so much about the first book and due to the rush I had a hard time believing in Katniss and Peeta's love story. In the book, I feel so much more and see so much more. But in the movie, I don't know why anyone bought any of it.
3. Books Are Portable.
Books are the easiest to relive anytime, anywhere. They're small, and you don't need electricity or anything to relive the story. Plus, movies get broken and they sort of come and go. Eventually, you're going to get rid of watching it and move along to something else. Whereas with books, when the time comes you can just break it out and read it again. A book holds more of an emotional value as well. You can picture the day you got it, the way those fresh clean pages turned. In the end, the book will always be with you.
4. The Story Gets Lost.
When watching a movie, you want talking. You want something to be happening because sitting there just watching people walk around, or sit there gets boring fast. When it comes to the book though, you have all the inner dialogue. You have the character's thoughts and feelings that aren't spoken. You know what's going through their heads when their just sitting there or walking around. A lot of that gets lost in the movie because they don't have the time or capability of putting it in there.
5. Movies Intensify Everything.
Movies romanticize a lot of little things that don't need it, they make stuff over dramatic. They ruin a lot of the story to turn it into something it's not just so that it will sell. Which, I get that. They need to not only make up for their budget, but have some extra as well. However, you have so many people that most likely loved the book and if they kept to the original story, they would love it all the more. They don't need to add to every little detail. Sometimes, simple is better.
In the end the book will always be better. The reader can get more out of it. You build you imagination, and you'll always have the story with you. Movies just butcher the whole thing. So I urge you to find a quiet place, pick out a good book, and just read.
