Even though The Princess Bride movie is told as a bedtime story, many fans of the popular movie do not realize that the movie is based on a book. According to Wikipedia my crack-internet research, the book was written in 1973 by William Goldman, and he also wrote the screenplay for the 1987 movie.
It’s one of my husband’s favorite movies, and it’s one of the DVDs that we actually own. Over the summer we showed it to Amanda (age 10), who found it mildly amusing. However, when she read Inkheart a couple of months ago, the various quotes from the Princess Bride included there piqued her interest, and so when she saw The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure at her school library, she checked it out.
She read it quickly, which is always a sign of twue love.
So, I suggested that we watch the movie again and she could help me write this column. She had finished it the day before we watched the movie, so she shouted out corrections as we watched:
“Screaming eels? They are supposed to be sharks.”
“Westley didn’t say that. Someone else did.”
“The ending is different. It’s more tragic in the book.”
Nit-picky differences aside, she liked the movie, and I think that she enjoyed it more having read the book (although in my mind The Princess Bride movie is one that grows on you after repeated viewings).
She really enjoyed the book, although I don’t think it was written for kids. I asked her about adult themes –after she had already finished it. She did say (when specifically asked) that there was some cursing (two or three times).
She recommends this book to adventure-loving readers age 10 to adult and to fans of the movie.
Managing Editor Jennifer Donovan also blogs at Snapshot about life with her tween daughter and preschool son.
My boys are Princess Bride fanatics!
I love that movie, and the book is one of my all time favorites to recommend when someone says they like to read humor. I’d have to agree with your daughter’s take on the book’s ending, though I still think that the movie is one of the few to live up to its book’s high standards.
Okay, I’m adding yet another to my TBR list! I just saw the movie for the first time last year, and I thought it was HILARIOUS!
I LOVE the movie The Princess Bride. Oddly enough, I wasn’t as fond of the book- maybe because I considered the movie to be the “original” for so long.
This is one of my favorite books and movies. Like others, I was familiar with the movie first and read the book last year (review here).
I didn’t realize til after reading the book and getting ready to review it, while looking for more information on S. Morgenstern, that there was no such person — the whole backstory and Goldman’s asides were all a part of the fiction. That made me realize how clever he really was, to write in two different styles in the same book.
Besides a little bit of language, there were one or two suggestive elements — the only one I can remember specifically was Goldman’s being distracted by a lady’s chest. I don’t know if younger kids would catch that.
We own the movie and my kids have seen it many times, but we never knew it was a book. My daughter got a copy for Christmas and she is enjoying it, although we’re so used to the movie that the book is a little hard to get into. It was hard to find and we ended up getting it on eBay!
The Princess Bride is one of the only movies I like better than the book it was based on.
This is one of those movies that I know I saw years ago, and I know that I enjoyed, but I can’t quite remember a whole lot about… I had no idea it was a book, though. Something for my oldest in a few years, perhaps!
One of the few times that I liked the movie better than the book. The book was okay, but some suggestive stuff and some way-too-wordy stuff just made it not as good as the movie, in my opinion.
Add me to the list of people who like this movie better than the book. The only thing the movie truly misses out on is the scene where Humperdink proposes to Buttercup. Otherwise the movie is better.
I have the book but haven’t been able to get into it. I could watch the movie weekly! I can’t wait until my guys are old enough to watch it. I have met one person who didn’t care for it. I think it’s because she doesn’t like plays on words and goofy humor. We think it’s great in our house. In fact, every time I watched Criminal Minds I always thought – that’s Inigo!! 🙂
Stop rhyming, I mean it!
Anybody want a peanut?
My favorite movie ever! The book has been on the TBR list for a long time. Though the previous comments that the movie is better aren’t making it move up the list any faster.
Thanks to Amanda for her expert opinion!
I read the book 30 some years ago as a pre-teen and have considered it my all time favorite book since then. I am a 44 year old 4th grade teacher and have had the opportunity to read MANY books over the years. I have not found another book that has stuck with me the way The Princess Bride has. Such clever writing. I believe that is what hooked me even more on reading than I already was way back then. I do enjoy the movie, but nothing will ever convince me that the movie is better than the book! Sorry,folks!