This might be the first book/movie comparison I’ve done where I say that I liked them both even though they were markedly different in the details. SKIP AHEAD TO THE PLOT PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON”T WANT SPOILERS!

The images of NYC in the movie were stunning and really set the vibe. In the book that vibe was set by the music they listened to and talked about.

In the book Natasha and her family were being deported THAT DAY, but in the movie it was the next morning.

The movie was completely missing the very important character of Irene and also much of the lawyer personal drama.

The reason for their deportation was different. In the movie it was a random raid by ICE, but in the book it was because her father was caught drunk driving.

The movie skipped Natasha and Daniel’s first meeting.

The ending was different and reflected the tone of each. In the movie it was 5 years later and in the book, 10 years.

PLOT/STORY High schooler Natasha and her family are being deported back to Jamaica. Daniel is set to have a college interview that his Korean/American parents are counting on to get him into an Ivy League school so that he can become a doctor. Natasha the pragmatist and Daniel the dreamer meet and spent the day together, falling in love. The book had more magic, more fairy dust and more of the real family relationships. Thumbs up- book

THE VISUAL The movie used NYC to its fullest advantage with the cinematography. The city has never looked better or more modern. Thumbs up – movie

CHARACTERS VS. ACTORS I liked the young characters in the book in all of their sometimes poor decision making glory. In the movie they both felt so much older. Charles Melton was ten years older than Daniel and although his acting was good, the age gap alone was noticeable. Yara Shahidi was closer to the right age. The acting and sparks were solid, but still… Thumbs up – book

THE ENDING As I discussed in the spoilers and a little in the plot, the book had that magical glow that continued all the way to the end. The movie, while I understand the choices that were made, was missing some of that. One ending relied on fate and one had Natasha taking fate into her own hands. Thumbs up- book

And the winner is… the book! I appreciated the movie and the choices it made too, but the book appealed more to the romantic in me.

Other book vs. movie polls you can still vote on: (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)