"It’s A Near Perfect Adaptation, In My Opinion": 17 Book Adaptations That Were As Good (Or Better) Than The Source Material

"So true to the book and such a beautiful and powerful movie. I don't know why this movie gets slept on."

A little while back, we posted about the book adaptations that are most beloved by members of the BuzzFeed Community. The commenters weighed in with the movies and TV shows we didn't get a chance to shout out in our first post, so here are 17 more adaptations that did justice to their source material.

Responses may have been edited for length and/or clarity. 

1. "Honestly, The Hunger Games trilogy (specifically, Catching Fire and Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2). The first may not have been the most faithful, but the last three were perfection, from the casting to the storyline to even the dialogue. They even made up for a lot of the material dropped by the first movie. It’s a near-perfect adaptation, in my opinion."

Lionsgate / Courtesy Everett Collection

—skailyr

2. "Holes will forever be the best book-to-film adaptation to reach screens."

Walt Disney Co. / Courtesy Everett Collection

—SenpaiNoticedU

3. "I'm a big fan of Bridget Jones's Diary. (Yes, I know it didn't age that well, but I still have a soft spot for it). The film is fairly different but still true to the original material, the characters are there, and the changes make sense and were necessary, considering that the book was originally published as a series of newspaper columns."

Miramax / courtesy Everett Collection

—judy24

4. "The Princess Bride is one of the best ones."

20th Century Fox Film Corp. / courtesy Everett Collection

—randocalrissian

"It’s a good book turned into a flawless movie."

—senexbarbatus

5. "Good Omens. It's one of my favorite books and I was afraid the TV series would ruin it, even with David Tennant in it. I was wrong. It's wonderful, and adds to the book."

Amazon / Via youtube.com

—emilyw4e084a1ff

6. "Outlander, hands down. The author has written episodes as well and is a consultant for the series. They’ve really brought the books to life and have stayed pretty in sync with the source material."

Starz! Movie Channel / Courtesy Everett Collection

—l1rusty99

7. "Atonement is an okay book and an incredible movie."

Focus Features / Courtesy Everett Collection

—palimpsest00

8. "No Gone Girl? I absolutely loved that movie and book. Gillian Flynn herself adapted it for the film, so the changes that were made flowed well."

20th Century Fox / courtesy Everett Collection

—First Time Momics

9. "The Virgin Suicides is a perfect adaptation in my mind. I read the book after seeing the movie and they stayed very faithful to it, and the casting really was spot on, along with the sets, costumes, and soundtrack."

Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection

—horsekream

10. "When Chocolat came out, I loved it and was so sure that the book would be even better. But it was surprisingly disappointing. It lacked charm, romance, and Vianne’s backstory. The main character was just flaky. The movie was hands-down a better story than the book."

Miramax / Courtesy Everett Collection

—neurotic garden gnome

11. "The Joy Luck Club was both a good book and a good movie."

Buena Vista Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

—Andrea

12. "The Secret Life of Bees! So true to the book and such a beautiful and powerful movie. I don't know why this movie gets slept on. I took my grandmother to see it. For some reason, she had it in her head that we were going to watch The Bee Movie and she was so shocked at the end of the movie. Movies never got her emotional and there is a scene in the movie that had her scrambling for the tissues. She said, 'They call me ice queen because I never cry in movies, and look at me!' Quality movie with a phenomenal cast!"

Fox Searchlight / Courtesy Everett Collection

—WhiskeyGingerrrr

13. "The Shawshank Redemption not only should have won every Oscar it was nominated for, but is the greatest adaptation ever and one of the best movies ever!"

Columbia Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection

—lancewrede

14. "Do graphic novels count? I loved The Sandman TV series and am hyped for the next season."

Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection

—Karaire

15. "Station Eleven. I don't normally mix books and TV adaptations but this is the exception. Survivors of a devastating flu attempt to rebuild the world anew while holding on to what's been lost. Including Shakespeare..."

HBO / Via youtube.com

—smc2007ny

16. "I was hoping to see The Fault in Our Stars."

20th Century Fox / Courtesy Everett Collection

—bexel

17. And finally, I would like to use this last entry to grant this user's wish: "Will they EVER put Howl's Moving Castle on one of these lists?!"

Buena Vista Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

—annac4eb061c96

Answer: Yes! (And agreed, for the record.) 

Which beloved adaptations did we miss? Tell us about 'em in the comments!