Last time I compared The Shining (post and the still open poll here) and this time I am comparing one of my favorite books and a new movie favorite.  My Secret Life of Bees review from 2009 is here. This is going to be a close call.

The Story/Plot  This is really a coming of age story for Lily, who has the burden of her mother’s death on her shoulders as well as feeling unloved by her father.  Both the movie and the book portrayed that.  They were so close in storytelling that the few differences from the two, Lily and Zach at the movies and the Sunday church services at the pink house, were not enough to make me choose either one.  Tie

The Visual  I thought the movie brought this story to life beautifully.  I loved seeing the richness of the south and especially liked seeing the beekeeping on screen.  I only wish there had been more of it.  Thumbs up-Movie

Characters vs. Actors  I love Queen Latifah and thought she was a great choice for August.  Actually all of the actresses were great.  The only one that didn’t really match my mind’s view was Rosaleen but the actress was fine.  Withe that being said, I loved the characters in the book and felt a much deeper connection with Lily in the book.  Tie

The Ending  The movie had a hollywood ending.  It was fine, but I prefer the slight messiness of the book.  Thumbs Up-Book

And the winner is…I’m giving a very slight edge to the book, but I think both were excellent.

Now it’s your turn to vote

Other book vs. movie polls you can still vote on: (It Ends With Us) (Perfume: The Story of a Murderer) (The Sun is Also a Star) (We Have Always Lived in the Castle) (Good Morning, Midnight/The Midnight Sky) (Before I Go To Sleep) (The Little Prince) (Charlie St. Cloud) (Far From the Madding Crowd) (The Girl on the Train) (Tuck Everlasting)  (Northanger Abbey) (Me Before You) (And Then There Were None) (Still Alice) (The Blind Side) (The Fault in Our Stars) (The Hound of the Baskervilles) (Gone Girl) (Jack Reacher) (Ender’s Game) (Carrie, the original) (Under the Tuscan Sun) (The Secret Life of Bees) (The Shining, the original)