Episode · The Book Review · 2024-07-18
Books mentioned on Barry Jenkins and Meg Wolitzer on Two of This Season's Novels on Screen
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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If Beale Street Could Talk
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin is a poignant 1974 novel that details the love story of a young Harlem couple facing systemic injustice after the man is wrongfully imprisoned for a violent crime.
Discussed“Jenkins has now followed up that life-changing effort with if be Street could talk his adaptation of a 1974 novel by James Baldwin in the novel and in the film Tish a 19-year-old woman in Harlem copes with the fact that her boyfriend fonnie has been imprisoned for a violent crime that he didn't commit”
Where to get it
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Giovanni's Room
Giovanni's Room is a 1956 novel by James Baldwin that explores the complex romantic and existential struggles of an American man living in Paris.
Discussed“I can't say it felt more cinematic per se because you read a book like giovan's room it's all in these Interiors”
Where to get it
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The fire next time
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin is a searing and brilliant collection of essays examining race, religion, and American identity through letters and personal reflection.
Discussed“yeah I first encountered Baldwin as an undergrad a friend or actually a woman who I had been dating kind of in the process of breaking up with me recommended that I read James Baldwin which I realize now was about her telling me I need to do some growing and so I originally read the fire next time in”
Where to get it
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The Interestings
The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer is a sweeping contemporary novel that follows the lives of a tight-knit group of friends who met at a performing arts camp as teenagers, tracing their relationships, ambitions, and disappointments over several decades.
Discussed“I went to a Performing Arts camp and I I that experience led to the novel The interestings to some degree”
Where to get it
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Wildlife
Discussed“there's an adaptation of a Richard Ford novel called Wildlife directed first feature directed by the actor Paul do with Carrie Mulligan Jake Gyllenhaal Bill Camp that's a long time ago that novel”
Where to get it
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Beautiful Boy
Discussed“there's also an adaptation of kind of two books in one which is sort of interesting uh a movie called Beautiful Boy which is based not on fiction but on two Memoirs by uh David and Nick Chef Father and Son”
Where to get it
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Tweak
Discussed“both of the books one called Beautiful Boy the together called tweak dealing with Nick Chef's meth addiction and the movie which stars Steve Carell and Timothy shalamay tries to interweave the two perspectives of those books”
Where to get it
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Atonement
Atonement by Ian McEwan is a sweeping historical novel that explores themes of guilt, class, and the devastating impact of war across multiple decades.
Discussed“the same goes for uh Ian mcan's atonement I I liked the book more than the movie but I thought the movie was good and he's had a bunch of things adapted”
Where to get it
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The Virgin Suicides (Bloomsbury Classic)
The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides is a poignant novel about the five doomed Lisbon sisters seen through the nostalgic perspective of neighborhood boys.
Recommended“I mean the vergin suicides Jeffrey eugen's novel is just a book that I adore and can and can read it's so short it's it's it's practically Nolla and I can reread that every 5 years and be struck a new by things in and the movie I can watch every 5 years or more often as well Sophia cop's”
Where to get it
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No Country for Old Men
No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy is a gripping suspense novel that tracks the violent aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong in West Texas alongside the pursuit of a ruthless killer.
Discussed“No Country for Old Men and True Grit are adapted from novels respectively by Cormac McCarthy and Charles poris and and they're very scrupulous adaptations”
Where to get it
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True Grit
Charles Portis's classic novel True Grit is a celebrated adventure story following young Mattie Ross as she hires a hardened U.S.
Discussed“No Country for Old Men and True Grit are adapted from novels respectively by Cormac McCarthy and Charles poris and and they're very scrupulous adaptations”
Where to get it
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Deliverance
Deliverance by James Dickey is a tense, critically acclaimed psychological thriller novel about a canoe trip in the American wilderness that turns into a harrowing survival ordeal.
Recommended“a book book in a film that I I really love are Deliverance uh the James Dicky novel and and also the film version”
Where to get it
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The Shining
The Shining by Stephen King is a classic horror novel about a struggling writer and recovering alcoholic who takes a winter caretaker job at an isolated, haunted mountain hotel with his family.
Discussed“and The Shining which is kind of a famous one because Stephen King I forget why exactly but he doesn't like the movie but I think it's obviously one of the great horror movies”
Where to get it
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Goodbye, Columbus
Goodbye, Columbus by Philip Roth is a celebrated early collection of fiction exploring the lives and internal cultural fractures of American Jews.
Discussed“a secret favorite of mine Philip rothus had hit and miss I guess Lu more more misses than hits a film of his or based on one of his books that I actually really like is goodby Columbus the 1969 movie with Richard Benjamin and Alie McGraw and I have a theory a theory about why that movie flopped”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (20) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“Roberto saviano internationally best-selling author of Gamora is back with a searing novel of Youth crime and Desperation in the violent streets of Naples Italy”
“read the piranas The Boy bosses of Naples by Roberto saviano wherever books are sold from Ferrar Strauss and giru”
“first up I'll be joined by the Oscar winner Barry Jenkins who's followed his award-winning Moonlight with an adaptation of a novel by James Baldwin”
“Roberto saviano internationally best-selling author of Gamora is back with a searing novel of Youth crime and Desperation”
“read the Piranhas The Boy bosses of Naples by Roberto savano wherever books are sold from Ferrar Strauss and giru”
“Meg willitzer is a prolific novelist whose books include the female persuasion and the interestings”
“Meg willitzer is a prolific novelist whose books include the female persuasion and the interestings”
“a few others that just spring mind briefly uh Anne patchett's belcanto which had a long journey to the screen I think is is out this season”
“the sisters brothers which is a Patrick dwit novel starring uh now starring walking Phoenix and John C Riley”
“the hate you give Angie Thomas's very big young adult smash novel is a movie and I think that that covers some of the ground”
“The Classic example is the Godfather Mario PUO novel I Haven I haven't to like that novel”
“but what about Jaws you know probably did read jaw didn't every like 15 y old boy read read the book too”
“iris is an example Iris the iris Murdoch movie I thought was quite nice”
“and some of the bigger books like say cloud outlas just become so unwieldy”
“I remember liking both of an Tyler's The Accidental Tourist although that was about a hundred years ago”
“I mean he he made he made Lolita Doctor Strange Love is an adaptation of a of a novel by Terry Southern Barry lyen Clockwork Orange you know the majority maybe of of Kubrick's features”
“I mean he he made he made Lolita Doctor Strange Love is an adaptation of a of a novel by Terry Southern Barry lyen Clockwork Orange you know the majority maybe of of Kubrick's features”
“oh bonfire the vanities that's what I was about to say”
“Nora Efron had optioned this is your life an early novel of mine and it was turned into her first film that she directed called this is my life”
“I think there's a forthcoming literary adaptation that you didn't mention partly because it's been around for years and has been close to unreleasable which is the adaptation of of Martin 's London Fields”