Joe David Brown (1915–1976)

I have seen the movie that was made based on this novel more than once. I have always loved it. I thought Tatum O'Neal was the coolest little kid ever and I loved Addie. The movie changed quite a few things from the book. For one thing, the title used to be Addie Pray, but when they re-printed the book, they switched it to match the title of the movie. To be honest, I like this title better, so that's okay with me. I wish they had been able to add some of the things that happened near the end of the novel into the movie; it would have been some great scenes, but I get why some of it wasn't in there. It would have been hard, and very long. Addie tells you a lot, and the timeline covers a few years, they chose to simplify the film, and it worked.

The novel however, is fantastic. Addie is all you could hope for in a narrator. She is tough, feisty, charming, funny, sweet and really pays attention to the people and world around her. Her relationship with Long Boy (Moze in the film) is brilliant. They get on with each other much better and quicker in the novel. Their cons and travels are interesting and fun to read about, Addie is smart and I have always enjoyed novels set near the 1920s and 30s and this is a great look at the depression era. For Addie alone, this is one of my favorite novels, but the story is rich and very much worth a read.… (more)