The art of the book-to-film adaptation: Some of 2023's best movies were based on books

Half of the Oscar nominees for Best Picture this year are films adapted from books.

You’ve probably heard that it’s best to read the book before seeing the movie, but “The Stacks” podcast creator Traci Thomas says she prefers to do it the other way around.

“The only thing that gets spoiled when you see the movie or the TV show first is the plot, but you can still really enjoy the writing of a book,” Thomas says. “If you read the book first, you're getting this beautiful writing. You're sort of getting to create the world for yourself. You're usually getting a lot more detail … so sometimes I think it can be disappointing to read the book first.”

Book and film versions of the same story always differ in some ways. And those differences are more apparent when popular, well-liked books are adapted. People who’ve read and liked the book are more likely to have preconceived notions about the story going into their viewing of the movie.

“I think what makes for a very good adaptation is sort of a mediocre book,” Thomas says. “There's a lot of room to get creative. There's a lot of room to sort of change the things that don't work with the book, to flesh out characters.”

“American Fiction”

Adapted from “Erasure” by Percival Everett

“Percival Everett is one of our great living novelists.

“He's prolific. He's smart. He's so biting, so creative, and I think what he's able to do with the novel ‘Erasure’ just isn't quite there with the movie. However, if you've never read the book, the movie is very good.”

“Killers of the Flower Moon”

Adapted from “Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI” by David Grann

“I saw the movie on Thursday night. Friday morning, I picked up the book. I was like, ‘I have to read the book. I have to see what happened here.’ The book is spectacular. The movie, to me, [is] very mediocre.

“I found the movie to be too long. And also, it was just it it wasn't as exciting. The book is really exciting.”

“BlacKkKlansman”

Adapted from “Black Klansman: Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime” by Ron Stallworth

“The book is sort of just okay. And Spike Lee really gets imaginative and creative, and he brings the story to life. He really fleshes out the characters.

“It's fun. It has that high-speed, high-paced kind of thriller drama cop movie, whereas the book was a little slower and sort of more internal. And the movie really is what I wanted when I read the book.”

Emiko Tamagawa produced and edited this interview for broadcast with Todd Mundt. Grace Griffin adapted it for the web.