After watching the movie, I just had to read the book. Some say, the book is always better than the movie, in this case though both book and movie are beautiful, but each in their own way.The book draws so much more depth and power (which is of course only hinted in the movie). It is written with a foreign musicality to it. Sentences are structured in ways that communicate the main character's unusual background--a French girl living in prewar Indochina. The way it's structured takes the reader into the poetic, romantic and exotic mind of the narrator.This is more literary, experimental (sure) and if you're looking for a romance novel, this ain't it. This one's artistic.