I Capture the Castle - Book v Movie

I Capture the Castle is a favourite book of mine. It's just one of those books you sink into and, you know, they live in a old rambling castle, which is just about the coolest setting for a book ever. I would love it to be the setting of my life :)

Cassandra has the most addictive voice that makes you fall in love with her and see the world through her eyes. And it was written over sixty years ago, but still features one of the charming-est YA female protags ever :)

It's one of those books that I knew I should read (being a classic) and then was definitely surprised how much I loved it when I did read it. I have been known to procrastinate on reading classics, because, well, they're classics and my brain somehow correlates that to mean boring. Blame my high school texts for that.

This is one not-boring classic.

Here's a blurb from GoodReads: 

I Capture the Castle tells the story of seventeen-year-old Cassandra and her family, who live in not-so-genteel poverty in a ramshackle old English castle. Here she strives, over a six-month period, first in a sixpenny book, then in a shilling book, and, finally, in a splendid two-guinea book, to hone her writing skills. And it is within these pages that she candidly chronicles her encounters with the estate's new, young, and handsome American landlords, the effects of her sister Rose's marital ambitions, her writer's-blocked father's anguished and ultimately renewed creativity, and her own hopeless, first descent into love.

By the time she pens her final entry, she has "captured the castle"--and the heart of the reader--in one of literature's most enchanting entertainments.

Then there's the movie. 

Sometimes I get nervous about watching movies that are from my fave books (you know they just can't be as good) BUT I really love the movie. 

It's different to the book, but so well cast that I really felt Romola Garai (also from Atonement) made the perfect Cassandra. And Rose Byrne plays her sister Rose, and Rose is one of my fave actresses -- and she's just so lovely in this. I just can't help but love her in her spoiled beauty. Bill Nighy is the dad and he's pretty unbelievably awesome. And the setting is just gorgeous. And I'm not even one of those people who use the word gorgeous. 

The movie uses Cassandra as a voice over narrator, which I'm normally not into, but I thought it was perfect here, it helped translate that charming voice from the book onto the screen. 

And I keep using the words charming and perfect. Huh. 

Speaking of perfect...

And then there's Henry Cavill. Which just takes Steven to a whole new level*. If all else fails, you know you'll enjoy the scenes in which he appears ;)

I am definitely recommending them both, the book and the movie (and Henry Cavill, too, while I'm at it :). I'm split on which I prefer more, as they both use their medium well to tell the story. The book's great if you're in that rainy day read kinda mood. If not, the movie is just as appealing and the storyline is unpredictable: two sisters, two brothers, one hot gardener-type-boy who turns to modelling (cue some nice scenes there), a ramshackle castle, crazy father, love and unrequited love all charmingly told and that's just a snippet of the story.

So, have you read the book? Seen the movie? Planning on either?

I recommend watching the trailer until the end :) It's very cute...

And on a side note. The Brief History of Montmaray is a YA book that was recently released and is being compared to I Capture the Castle. Has anyone read it yet? I know I'm intrigued...

* of hotness, that is.