Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption

WHY: Have loved the movie for a long time, and did not even know it was adapted off a novella or that the story was penned by Steven King. As I'm trying to read more older books and more King, thought I would give this a go.
DIFFERENCES: Surprisingly, the movie was extremely faithful to the short story - with most of the memorable and impactful lines literally coming off the page. Written through the first-person perspective of prisoner Red, I will admit that I struggled to read his voice as an Irish and instead imagined Morgan Freeman and his dulcet tones were reading to me, which worked really well for immersion into the story. We get all the details of Andy Dufresne's life here, from the trial to the sisters to the financial dealings of the prison guard and warden. Whilst here the wardens rotate, and the twist is hinted at and explained a lot more, I still found this to be a really enjoyable tale about the persistence of hope in the darkest conditions - a theme that stood out a little more here than when viewing.
WHO: Honestly, despite thorougly enjoying this read it is very hard to recommend it over the 1994 oscar-nominated film - if you haven't seen it, go watch it in one sitting. This is really for the die-hard fans of King, or any super fans of the movie, which is one of those rare adaptations that gets all the major beats and themes right, and then adds some.