Book Talk: The Book Club

[ChromaKelly]

I'm about halfway through the show and I don't get why they are making Mia so unlikeable and adding this antagonism between Mia and Elena. I mean Mia burning that picture, WTF?

[Inquisitionist]

On 3/18/2020 at 11:49 AM, OtterMommy said:

The actress playing Izzy is doing a great job of adding depth to the character that isn't there in the book, and I really appreciate that.  I'll be interested to see where it goes.

I think this is true of many of the performances.  As I read the book (and I was among the few who did not rave about it), I thought "This would play better on the screen with writers and actors who could flesh out the stereotypes that Ng has created."  

I had forgotten that Mia and Pearl were not black in the book.  I do like the depth this adds.  And while Washington is playing Mia a bit too sneering and contemptuous for my taste, I like that Mia is shown to have flaws from the start rather than being the saint-like earth mother of the book. 

According to IMDb, the actors playing Pearl, Lexie, and Izzy are all 4'11".  I know Reese is tiny (5'1") and they probably didn't want the younger actors towering over her, but good gosh, they are munchkins!

[Inquisitionist]

 

On 3/29/2020 at 11:54 PM, chocolatine said:

I caved and read the book this weekend because (a) there's not much else to do during a statewide stay-at-home order, and (b) I didn't want to wait several weeks to find out what's going to happen on the show. I maintain my first impression that the book is poorly written. In the same way as many other recent bestsellers it's driven by a sensationalist plot, and suffers from shallow characterization and overused cliches. Since Hulu's previous literary adaptions were The Handmaid's Tale and Catch-22 - two of my favorite books of all time - this one was a huge disappointment.

Having said that, the Mia character works much better in the book than in the show. Book Mia is aloof and a little "too cool for school", but she's always civil with everyone (including Elena) and warm towards the Richardson kids. And while she's supportive of Bebe she doesn't egg her on or get personally involved like Show Mia. 

My friend Jill, who reads everything, nailed it on Goodreads.  It's been a while since I slogged through it, but I think there are both pros and cons to the changes with Mia's character.  I like that she's no longer the saintly earth-mother contrast to Elena, but the characterization has swung too far in the other direction.