True Grit

I read rave reviews about the book after watching the John Wayne movie (I've not seen the more recent remake), and I expected it to be fabulous. However, although the narration by Mattie does add something to the reading experience, aside from the ending that was softened for the movie the plot is exactly the same and so held little in the way of suspense or surprise for me. Barring that element, there was not much else to it, so I'm a little baffled by all the praise.

Just an amazing book. I was a little disappointed that my favorite scene from the movie wasn't in the book, but was a Coen Brothers invention. At the same time, I was impressed by how faithful an adaptation the movie is – the added scene(s) fit perfectly, and the small bits and characters that were removed aren't missed.

One of the best aspects of the movie was the dialogue, the clever back-and-forth with occasional lapses into the surreal. Not only are all the major exchanges lifted directly from the book, but as it's a first-person narration, the book has that same quality of voice on every page.