Elizabeth Peters

Here’s my take on it: Although I haven’t read the book cover to cover, it is obviously the better of the two. Daisy Edgar-Jones, who was phenomenal in Normal People, was left without much opportunity to showcase her talents in this movie. That is to say, the producers and screenwriters could have done a better job. It lacked the gravitas and depth that the book offered reader’s imaginations. This is especially obvious when dealing with the physical and sexual abuse portrayed. However, it can be taken for the lighter scenes as well. Less would have been more, in this case. When a little more silence would have added to the wonder of Kya reading her first sentence, the producers had too much action. When Kya is supposedly “hidden,” watching people interact, she is within a few metres, in full view for everyone else to notice. Kya in the book appears to be more socially awkward and not as happy as is shown in the movie. The most obvious of the faux pas is of course the appearance of the characters and their surroundings. It is clear that Kya and her family weren’t clean or tidy in appearance, perhaps more so when her mother left. The shack’s living room looks like anyone else’s in current times — tidy, not especially dingy. All in all, I feel that the movie didn’t do the book any justice.