Okay, okay, I know everyone has their own tastes and opinions on absolutely everything these days.

And of course, I’m eagerly anticipating the return of Ted Lasso for season four – though it may be missing some of the American football coach in England charm as this one is based in Kansas City.

But, after having an interesting conversation about comic book characters in a podcast recording with my buddy Anthony (release date August 7, 2025) – and doing a review for the upcoming Chris’ Corner column in the weekly SFD Saturday Newsletter – I figured we should have a book blog post this week as well.

This one I’ve been thinking about for a while: my Top 6 books that were better than the movie or series.

1. The Godfather by Mario Puzo. Yes, the movie(s) were critically acclaimed and are considered huge classics. However, I read the original book and it’s so, so much better. There are stories told about various characters that never make the film cut, but that actually tie so much of the movie story together – including specific situations in The Godfather III. The writing makes you not want to put it down and indeed I often read to the point of exhaustion before finally finishing. Even if you think you know the whole story about all the stories, you don’t until you read this masterpiece.

2. Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. I read all the books. Heck, I even read the short story called The Ice Dragon (more for kids, but still a quick and fun read). Though I enjoyed the HBO series, the books are way better and the stories they left out of the small screen adaptation are frustrating. I won’t tell you them because I believe you should read the books yourself and come to your own conclusions, but certainly many fans of the written series agree with me that certain parts should have been incorporated in the tv series.

3. The Dark Tower by Stephen King. The first series of books that I ever really got into (I was 13 years old when I received The Gunslinger for Christmas). Starting with “The man in black fled across desert, and the gunslinger followed” and all the way to the final sentence of The Dark Tower VII (no spoilers here), all seven novels in the series are enthralling. Though I have to admit, The Wastelands was a bit tough to get through – though worth it. Maybe King did that on purpose. Now, the only film adaptation is absolute garbage. It’s embarrassing that this mammoth series of intrigue, mystery, action, romance, and more is meshed into some under two hours of nonsense. The book series should have received the Game of Thrones or Godfather treatment at least. They still can if they want to and they should. But, in the meantime, the books are amazing and your should read them.

4. The Chronicles of Narnia by  C.S. Lewis. Many of us grew up reading the Chronicles of Narnia, starting with The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, and following through until The Last Battle. Much like The Godfather or Game of Thrones, the screen stories are pretty good and worth the watch. However, like anything the written stories are so much better and there are always items we love left out due to budgets, ability to recreate scenes, and timing. If you haven’t read this series (even as an adult) you should pick it up. It’s fictional fun that is easy and interesting.

5. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Even trying to adapt this darkly satirical novel into a film was folly at its finest. They were never going to match the voices in my head, the laughs I burst out while reading, and the depth of the writing that made me think about what life was all about.

6. Dreamcatcher by Stephen King. The second King installment and final book is better than the movie or series in my Top 6 list.

Okay, those are mine on the list. I haven’t read every single book that became a series, but there are some where I was okay with the adaptation to film or tv or streaming – partly because they did a good job, and partly because I didn’t care for the book as much as others did.

If you haven’t read any of the books on this list, I suggest you try them out!

That’s it for me! Ciao for Now!