A Room with a View
by E.M. Forster
If you’ve seen the film adaption of A Room with a View, you’re extremely well-prepared for an easy read, should you choose to pick up the E.M. Forster’s original novel. The film and novel are so similar, it’s hard to tell which came first! There are pros and cons to that situation: you won’t get lost in the old-fashioned story or language, but you won’t get any inside information about plot points that were cut out from the movie.
If you haven’t seen the movie, here’s a brief plot synopsis: A young woman vacations in Italy with her aunt and chaperone, and she meets a young passionate man who awakens her own passions and makes her see the deficiencies in her stuffy fiancé. It’s a very simple story, but one that’s very accessible to teenage readers. If you like stories about breaking out of one’s shell and finding passion in romance, but you also like your stories to be clean and rather old-fashioned, you’ll probably really like this novel. Also, it’s not very long. I read it through over a weekend, and I actually liked it better than the movie, since I’m not the biggest fan of everyone in the cast. One more bonus: the film’s ending that’s had everyone wondering as to the meaning is fully explained in the novel!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of the 1985 film adaptation here!
If you haven’t seen the movie, here’s a brief plot synopsis: A young woman vacations in Italy with her aunt and chaperone, and she meets a young passionate man who awakens her own passions and makes her see the deficiencies in her stuffy fiancé. It’s a very simple story, but one that’s very accessible to teenage readers. If you like stories about breaking out of one’s shell and finding passion in romance, but you also like your stories to be clean and rather old-fashioned, you’ll probably really like this novel. Also, it’s not very long. I read it through over a weekend, and I actually liked it better than the movie, since I’m not the biggest fan of everyone in the cast. One more bonus: the film’s ending that’s had everyone wondering as to the meaning is fully explained in the novel!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of the 1985 film adaptation here!