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This is the first time in a long time that I have read the book AFTER seeing the movie. The last time I did that was “The Hunt for Red October”, where both book and movie were very good. This one, to me at least, has proven to be the same. Obviously it becomes anti-climatic, knowing the end. At least with seeing the movie after there is a sense of wonder of how the director will handle the scenes, or if they even make the cut.
The biggest difference between the movie and book was the focus of character. The movie seemed to focus on the townsfolk of Cold Mountain and how the Civil War effected them, though mostly Ada and Inman. But the book almost exclusively focuses on Ada and Inman with very little of others, though Ruby gets her fair share of time. The movie stretched out more of the characters.
However, as always, the book is better then the movie. We see the great depths of character of especially Inman. The reader gets a full account of his mindset, of his passions and emotions, or his deep desire to be with Ada, and for the war to end. How he has seen more then he wants to see, and how it haunts his every step.
There is also the added plus of Frazier’s writing style that makes the book better. Especially if you enjoy reading. The prose has an aire about it that is poetic, yet still down to earth. We are talking about a time when some individuals where not well educated. So even though some of the characters talk with a stereotypical southern dialect, the naration’s lines mix well to make it all sing. One of the comments on the cover of the book was from Newsweek and states that this story borders on being called literature and not just fiction. In some respects I agree, though my experience with true literature is minimal. Frazier’s prose however is what separates this from many other books.
There is one hang-up though. Some may find it hard to follow. I did at first, but soon grew accustomed to it. It’s the fact that there are no quotes in the book at all. So when someone speaks, it’s almost as if the narator (which is third person and unnamed) is just telling the story. For instance:
Without pausing even for salutation Inman said, Who put out your pair of eyes?
The only time you get some idea that someone is “speaking” is when it happens at the beginning of a paragraph. There you get a dash before the text.
—Nobody, said the blind man with a friendly smile on his face. I never had any.
Like I said, this may annoy the daylights out of some.
The reason I wanted to go back and read the book was because I enjoyed the movie so much, and have continued to watch it. Anytime I would be flipping through the channels and would come across it, I would stop and watch. I had heard many good things about the book, but was worried about hype. What I got though was a great emotional read, even if I knew what was going to happen before it did. I can see though why it was so highly acclaimed.
9/10
