I saw the film version of this book first, and enjoyed it very much. But the book is so much better - infact, I question some of the decisions made when the screenplay was written. The protagonist in the film is depressed, unattractive, and spends most of the movie in a sullen funk. In the book, we glean that he is a pretty good looking guy, hilarious, and morose in an endearing sort of way. I laughed out loud - highly entertaining read, and much more occurs on the wine-tasting odyssey than the film allows for.If you like this book, you will absolutely love "St.Urbain's Horseman" by Mordecai Richler.