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Alice Adams (1935): Film vs Book
Film · 1935 · Directed by George Stevens · Starring Katharine Hepburn, Fred MacMurray
About the film
A young woman from a modest family tries to rise in small-town society and hide her embarrassment about her background.
How close is it to the book?
Loosely based on the bookThe film softens the book's satire and makes the heroine more sympathetic and romantic, and adds a tender, more hopeful mood.
Read or watch first?
The novel is more critical of social ambition.
What the book gives you
Alice Adams by Booth Tarkington
A sympathetic, sharply drawn portrait of a young woman's wish to belong.
Who will like it: Readers who like gentle, observant stories about hopes and pretenses.