Blog 12: Book versus Movie

Book Selection: "Because of Winn Dixie"
Author: Kate DiCamillo
Jacket Illustration: Chris Sheban

Summary:

Ten year old India Opal Buloni (Opal) has just moved to Naomi, Florida with her father, "the preacher." While Opal is getting settled and trying to adapt to a life in a new town, her father is starting to preach in the old convenience store, which is now the residence of Open Arms Baptist Church of Naomi. When her father sends her to the local Winn Dixie to pick up macaroni and cheese, rice, and two tomatoes, Opal brings back more than her father bargained for. While in the store a rugged, evidently homeless, dog takes the store by storm as he knocks over nearly everything in the produce aisle. When the store owner screams to call the pound, Opal quickly steps up to say that he is her dog. Through quick thinking, she names him Winn Dixie and the dog follows her out of danger and to her home.

When Opal arrives home, her father is at first not enthused about a dog, however with very little convincing, he ends up telling Opal that she can keep him. Opal's father may be feeling guilt for making Opal move away from her friends, and in general he likely feels sorry for Opal because her mother left both of them when Opal was only three years old. As the summer progresses, Opal is thankful that she has Winn Dixie to keep her company. None of the children her age have any interest in becoming her friend. Two boys her age (Dunlap and Stevie Newberry) seem only interested in making rude comments to Opal and her interest in the elderly old lady, Gloria Dump, whom they believe to be a witch. Opal has also made friends with the librarian named Miss Franny, however she struggles to connect to Amanda Wilkinson, a girl about her age who frequents the library.

One day Opal and Winn Dixie see a bright red collar that would truly make Winn Dixie feel at home. When Opal goes into the pet shop, she meets Otis, the quiet shop attendant. In exchange for the collar, Opal agrees to work in the shop tidying up and sweeping floors. One day when Opal comes in to work, Otis seems to have all the animals in a trance as he plays his guitar. Otis admits that he was once jailed for playing in the public, but he claims that music is only good if it is listened to by people. As Opal schemes to help Otis make friends, Gloria Dump is also secretly working to help Opal become more accepting and open to friendship with children her own age. When Opal comes up with the idea of a summer party, Gloria insists that she invites the Newberrys and Amanda Wilkinson. When Winn Dixie goes missing, it is up to Opal and her father to bring him home. However, when they arrive back to the party, many surprises lay in store.



Compare/Contrast:
Wow. This book was quite incredible. I read it with a fervor and did not put it down until I was finished with it! I know that I am definitely going to read it to my third grade class next year as a read aloud. The story line is amazing and it seems to really capture the emotions of Opal. Additionally, it teaches some really valuable lessons about getting to know someone before you pass judgment upon them. The movie was also really good. Of course I am always partial to books as they provide more detail and background, but this movie was nearly as impressive as the book.

There were some glaring differences from the book to the movie. Some small details included Opal and Winn Dixie's appearance. In the book, Opal had red hair and freckles (just like her mom), but in the movie her hair was blond and the freckles were missing. Additionally, DiCamillo initially describes Winn Dixie as "big and ugly", while the Winn Dixie in the movie was big, he was not ugly and his coat of hair seemed decently maintained. Another difference I noticed was when Opal brought Winn Dixie home. In the book, the father was fairly open to the idea of a dog, however in the movie he told Opal "no" many times. In fact, the owner of the trailer park also demanded that the pound be called on poor Winn Dixie.



Positives also came from the movie that were not provided in the book. Usually this list is rather short (since I prefer books), however I think the director and screen writer did an excellent job adding in interesting parts to liven up the story. In the movie, Opal's father actually calls the pound on Winn Dixie. Winn Dixie is in the truck being ready to be sent away when Opal's father caves in and lets Opal keep Winn Dixie temporarily. In addition to this major difference, Annasophia Robb, the actress who played Opal, did a phenomenal job acting! Her expressions were genuine, yet remained child-like. My favorite part of the entire movie was when Miss Franny was telling Opal the story about the bear breaking into the library. Robb's expressions during this were priceless! Overall, on a scale of 1 to 10, the book would rank a 9 and the movie would rank an 8.

Images courtesy of http://images.google.com.