Sangu Mandanna's Top 10 Adaptations + The Lost Girl Giveaway!

Hello dear readers!

I feel so honored to have the brilliant, awesome, brilliantly awesome Sangu Mandanna (author of The Lost Girl) over at the blog today, and she's stop over to share her Top 10 adaptation faves! Wanna know if your own faves made it to her list? Check it out below.

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Adaptations are very, very tricky. When an iconic or popular book is adapted, fans become rabid. They want their favourite book made just right. I want my favourite books adapted just right. So I get very snotty when something doesn’t live up to the book.

I also understand that an adaptation is just that. It’s somebody else’s vision, not usually the author’s. It’s not supposed to be the book transcribed into a different medium. Many adaptations have failed because they’ve tried to be too like the book (in my opinion the first two Harry Potter films, much as I love them, aren’t as good as the others because they’re such literal translations of the books).

So it’s a fine line. I am very picky. But I have seen some winners and here, in order, are my top ten.

10. Blood and Chocolate (2007), adapted from the novel by Annette Curtis Klause
This is an unusual choice because the film is so very different from the book. So different, in fact, that just about the only thing they seem to share is a title, character names and werewolves. So maybe this only made the cut because I actually saw the film before I read the book, which meant I wasn’t prejudiced either way. But, weighed separately, I like the book and I like the film. So that makes this a success for me.

9. Pride and Prejudice (2005), adapted from the novel by Jane Austen
I don’t know why I like this so much. I just do! And Matthew Macfayden really grows on you.

8. Beauty and the Beast (1991), adapted from the traditional fairy-tale (original author or creator unknown)
Oh, I know it’s Disney. I know it’s not entirely faithful to the original versions of the story. But I love this. I love Disney. (And am I crazy or does anyone else think the Beast has a really sexy voice?)

7. Emma (2007), TV adaptation of the novel by Jane Austen
This is the second of Austen’s novels to make it onto this list, so it will probably come as a surprise when I confess that I am not an Austen fan. I haven’t really been able to enjoy her books. But for some reason film and TV adaptations of her work are always a winner for me, and Emma just about tops the list. Kate Beckinsale is a great Emma.

6. The Hunger Games (2012), adapted from the novel by Suzanne Collins
I thought the filmmakers did a great job with this adaptation. It was true to the book and added a few very nice touches (seeing more of Seneca Crane was awesome). The music really made this film for me; it was incredibly stirring.

5. Howl’s Moving Castle (2004), adapted from the novel by Diana Wynne Jones
All I can say is: SO. UNBELIEVABLY. CUTE.

4. The Godfather (1972), adapted from the novel by Mario Puzo
I think this is the iconic example of an almost perfect adaptation. Practically every fan I know thinks so. The film may have cut a lot of the book’s plot and subplots out, but I think it did so wisely because it gives itself room to do the real story justice. But where this adaptation really succeeds is with its cast.

3. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 and Part 2 (2010 and 2011), adapted from the novel by JK Rowling
I love the Harry Potter books. I also love the films. But these two adaptations are my favourite of the lot. They’re dark, they’re gritty, they’re poignant, they made me cry and laugh, and they’re so very true to the book.

2. Sherlock (2010), adapted from the stories by Arthur Conan Doyle
I love Sherlock Holmes. The original stories rank among my favourite stories of all time and I am a rabid, rabid Holmes fan. Which means I am rabid about adaptations. Very few actually win my approval, let alone make me buy the DVD. Don’t even get me started on Robert Downey Jr. But the BBC’s adaptation of Sherlock Holmes ticks every box. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are fantastic. And yes, I have both series on DVD. The third cannot come soon enough...

And finally,

From http://www.williamhadams.com/

1. Les Miserables (musical, 1985 and film, 2012), adapted from the novel by Victor Hugo
Nothing I say could possibly explain just how much I love Les Mis and how successfully and beautifully I think the musical (and film version of the musical) adapted the book. So I’m just going to let the fact that this tops my list speak for itself.


What favourite adaptations make your list?

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The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna
Release Date: January 3rd 2013
Published by: Definitions (Random House UK)


Summary:

Eva’s life is not her own. She is a creation, an abomination – an echo. Made by the Weavers as a copy of someone else, she is expected to replace a girl named Amarra, her ‘other’, if she ever died. Eva studies what Amarra does, what she eats, what it’s like to kiss her boyfriend, Ray. So when Amarra is killed in a car crash, Eva should be ready.

But fifteen years of studying never prepared her for this.

Now she must abandon everything she’s ever known – the guardians who raised her, the boy she’s forbidden to love – to move to India and convince the world that Amarra is still alive ...

Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

GIVEAWAY TIME! WIN A COPY OF THE LOST GIRL! (UK version)

Thanks to the lovely folks over at Random House, we have 1 copy of The Lost Girl to give away!

Rules:

Open to UK residents (if know someone in the UK who can receive this book when you win, feel free to enter!)

Must be at least 13 years old

Ends 2/16.


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Review: The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna

What if there exists a copy of you? If you are to die anytime, knowing someone is there to replace you, how will you feel?

Title: The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna
Pages: 432
Release Date: August 28th 2012
Published by: Balzer + Bray
Source: Publisher (Thanks Sarah!)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository
Buy locally: Fully Booked

Summary:

Eva’s life is not her own. She is a creation, an abomination—an echo. Made by the Weavers as a copy of someone else, she is expected to replace a girl named Amarra, her “other”, if she ever died. Eva studies what Amarra does, what she eats, what it’s like to kiss her boyfriend, Ray. So when Amarra is killed in a car crash, Eva should be ready.

But fifteen years of studying never prepared her for this.

Now she must abandon everything she’s ever known—the guardians who raised her, the boy she’s forbidden to love—to move to India and convince the world that Amarra is still alive.

What Eva finds is a grief-stricken family; parents unsure how to handle this echo they thought they wanted; and Ray, who knew every detail, every contour of Amarra. And when Eva is unexpectedly dealt a fatal blow that will change her existence forever, she is forced to choose: Stay and live out her years as a copy or leave and risk it all for the freedom to be an original. To be Eva.

Eva has existed within the confines of Amarra's life. For she is her Echo, a girl created by the Weavers for the sole purpose of replacing Amarra in the event that she dies. What Amarra studies, she learns. If Amarra gets a tattoo, she gets one. She knows every single detail of Amarra's life, who her friends are, her boyfriend, what she did on a particular day. Eva tries to live the same life as much as she can. There's no escaping it. It's a routine, what she's destined to do. But Eva longs for more. For freedom to be herself. And she might have to pay for it with her life.

A girl who has been sheltered all her life, longing for freedom. I loved how she found her strength through what she has experienced, that she can also be tough when needed. I have never been this responsive to a character as I was with Eva. All the while I felt like a bystander who cannot do anything but see her through her story no matter how difficult it becomes for her. Here is a girl who can never be her own person no matter how much she wants to. It's a lifetime she dedicates to replicate that of another person. It's a sad fate. She's a living entity, she feels, she thinks and she deserves to live life like everyone does. While I was reading about her I kept on thinking how it wasn't her fault to be born the way she was. To be hated, criticized and beaten for being someone who can ease the pain of a family losing a loved one? Is it a sin? Does stepping on Amarra's shoes and continuing on with her life can be considered as stealing? Eva's existence itself sparked an inner debate inside of me on what is right and wrong. Eva's existence wasn't normal, artificial, unnatural, but the purpose she serves is good. But is it enough? Is the reason good enough for someone like her to exist? It's a question that plagued me constantly, but it didn't stop me from sympathizing and liking Eva.

Life as an echo is difficult. Eva's role does not start when her Other's life ends. It started the moment she was born, when she was fashioned to be as similar as possible to Amarra. When you think about it, Eva was left to deal with the most difficult part of losing someone: the aftermath, what happens next. All the pain, the guilt, the anger, the sadness and the loss are emotions she had to fight with everyday. I was appalled with the treatment she got when she replaced Amarra. It's complicated and difficult to make people understand that she was not there to steal Amarra's life from her but to provide relief for those who cannot bear their loss. There's a thin line between taking over one's life and continuing to exist on her behalf. It might sound the same to some, and that sparked a lot of rage and violence that was thrown in Eva's way.

Ray and Sean are both intriguing characters that played such integral parts on both Eva and Amarra's life. They're the anchors on which both girls are tied to, and sometimes they are the ones who kept both girls going. Ray's character was very complicated compared to Sean, as his took so many shades of darkness and at times through those dark moments you see a sliver of something good beyond his pain and longing for Amarra. The decisions he has made provided a shaky foundation for his character, and he's still taking shape. Is he a friend? Foe? Can he even be considered a love interest for Eva? What does Ray sees when he looks at Eva? Sean on the other hand is the steady and constant source of strength for Eva. The good boy, like a knight in shining armor always there ready to sweep Eva off her feet in times of distress. I've had enough of reading about good boys, but Sean provided the much needed reprieve and comfort Eva needed, it's a relief to read about him. That there's still someone who's still capable of being kind to her. 

Sangu Mandanna's provided a great backdrop for such a unique story. She has woven Bangalore's sights and India's culture into Eva's life in rich detail, a perfect contrast to her British upbringing and it helped expand the story quite a lot and gave it a more exotic feel. The Lost Girl also had quite a lot of characters that plays such important roles in the story. Mina Ma, Eric and Ophelia will make their way into the readers hearts as Eva's Guardians and the things they do for and taught her. Another one of the fascinating points of this book is how layered the story felt. It had so much in it, a lot of complex relationships and complicated situations that holds the story together and yet there was never a moment where I was confused or felt saturated with the conflicts it presents. It was not just about Eva and Amarra's life, but also those of the people around her. The Weavers had their own story, a shared secret past that connects Eva to her creator in ways that are yet to be revealed. Also, the author did not attempt to 'destroy' Amarra's presence just so Eva's character would matter. It was the opposite, as Eva had to live with the actions Amarra has made and the emotions that she has kept well guarded in the things and memories she has left behind, and it gave the book a very convincing and dramatic effect. Amarra's influence, the life she lived was like a ghost that haunted Eva.

While the world building wasn't perfect, it was enough to draw readers in. I would love to feel that dystopian aspect of the story a little bit more, and not just the sci-fi part. There's still much to learn about the Weavers, and the world where they exist is still vague. The concept of creating an Echo is something new and intriguing in itself; it's that different, seemingly complicated way that sets apart the story from other books, and I hope more will be revealed in the process of creating an Echo and not just mentioning how they are 'stitched' together.

Despite those little faults, I found myself hugging this book so hard when I finished reading. The Lost Girl just filled me with a jumble of overpowering emotions, all of which touched my heart deeply. It's so beautiful. An overwhelmingly creative story. One that urges people to think, think very hard, and evaluate the value of a human life and how to live it. Debut author Sangu Mandanna has written an emotional, unforgettable tale of one's girl's struggle to just live as herself, to have an identity to call her own and feel how it is to be human, to love and be loved.

Sangu Mandanna, you are brilliant!

My rating:

Content (plot, story flow, character):

I am curious to know what happens with Eva in the next book!

Stunning: Worthy of a Goddess' Praise!

Book Cover:

Gorgeous, appropriate representation of Eva and her life as an Echo.