The Sweet Hereafter Book and Movie

This book has become one of my favorites. I think of it often and, before I looked up the dates of my review, I thought I'd re-read it every two or three years. It's just that strong of a story that it really stuck with me.

I knew there was a movie but, not being a major movie person, I didn't feel inclined to watch it. However, I came across it during a random library database search and, given my recent "book to movie" posts, I decided to give it a try.

But since the book is always better than the movie, let's start off with my book reviews.

I first read it in 2011. I rated it four stars with this review: This is the story of a school bus crash in a small town. It's also told from multiple points of view, including the bus driver, the father of a dead child, one of the injured children, and an ambulance-chasing lawyer. Obviously this meant each character had an entirely different spin to put on the story. I really enjoyed this book because it was an interesting concept and was well-written, but my favorite part was the emotional factor. There wasn't really one. In most cases that would be something to complain about, but here it was imperative. How easy would it be to get swept up in the tragedy of losing so many school-aged children? The book could have been a big sob-fest, forcing sentimental mush on the reader. While the tragedy isn't glossed over, Banks gently turns our focus to how the town is coping.

Then I re-read it in 2021. That time, I kept it at four stars but added: I read this years ago, before I was a parent. It was still heart wrenching then, but reading it now, with lockdowns and school shootings and so much that can possibly impact your kid no matter how safe you keep them, it hits differently. I still love how Banks shows several distinct points of view and gives you no real resolution, just as would happen in the real world.

The movie... I always feel the need for a disclaimer. I'm not a movie person. I can't focus on movies. Part of the reason I love reading is because I can envision everything myself, and if I miss something, I can read back over the passage instead of rewinding and reorienting myself. And I can see all the praise for this movie on the cover and when I looked it up online. But it just wasn't for me. I felt such an emotional connection with the book, but the movie just felt scattered and distant. I watched the first twenty minutes half-convinced that the library had given me the wrong disc, despite one of the opening scenes being on both the cover of the movie AND my book! It just felt so random that I was disoriented and had to start the movie over again, forcing myself to pay attention.

I will also say that I haven't read the book in four years. I usually like to re-read a book before seeing the movie, but this one was a bit spur of the moment. So maybe if I'd recently read the book, the movie would have resonated more with me. Or maybe not! Maybe it's just me. But I still love the book and plan to re-read it again soon, especially with the weather getting cold.