The Butterfly Effect

Rating:
Summary: Just so you know, the book is based on the film screenplay
Review: I bought this book is March of 2004; roughly 2 months after viewing the movie in theaters. The film was not released to DVD until July, so the book was very good for holding my interest for the wait in between.
The book is a great read alone. While some things may appear more shocking or 'real' on screen, the book is also very good; because it provides detailed descriptions of events and elements of the film that the viewer is left to assume.
Perhaps I am in the minority, but I didn't find the film to be all that disturbing. It DID make me think a lot about life for the weeks and months after seeing the movie (and then again after reading the book), but I didn't find it unsettling, really. I found the extreme circumstances displayed on screen to be quite realistic to today's standards of life for some young people (sadly). It would be a very troublesome display for children, though. I do not recommend showing the movie to anyone who's younger than 13.
However bothersome these scenes may be on screen, I found them to be more disturbing in the book because there are detailed descriptions of violence; as well as sights and smells that are only implied on screen. But these descriptions are very good and helpful to understanding the true meaning of the story.
The book also fills in a lot of little holes from the movie. The deleted scenes from the movie are a part of the book, so it makes the story as a whole feel more complete and explained. There's little room for confusion here.
If you saw the movie but were somewhat confused, get this book. If you liked the movie and want to explore the story a bit more, get the book. If you found the idea of this movie interesting, but prefer to read... get the book. Even though it's only a movie tie-in, it's a great novel.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book!!
Review: I have read tons of books and I have to say that this is my favorite! It's the tale of a man named Evan (Kutcher in the movie) who tries to restore the childhood of a loved one, Kayleigh (Smart in the movie), so they may live together forever in happiness. They had a rough childhood. Evan finds a way to change the outcome of things using his journals. Will Kayleigh and Evan ever live happily ever after? You'll just have to read and find out!

Rating:
Summary: The Movie!
Review: I just bought the book and I haven't had the chance to read it yet. But I went and saw the movie yesterday. It's Incredible!!! The best movie I have seen in years. I can't wait to read the book.

Rating:
Summary: Great Read
Review: I read this book before watching the movie and loved it. I would recommend if you watch it on DVD to watch the theatrical version to get the same ending as the book. I watched the directors version first and was disappointed in the ending. However, the movie is very good much like the book.

Rating:
Summary: More of a movie than a book
Review: I saw the movie first, and for once the movie was better than the book. Ok, so the book was based on the movie which explains alot. I bought this book because I really loved the movie. However, there was something lacking in the book. I felt that there needed to be more connections between the reader and the characters. In other words, I wanted to care about them more, get to know them more in a way you only can in a book, not in a movie. However, it never quite gets there, it feels like you are just watching the movie.

As I said, I really enjoyed the movie, so this book was ok. There was just something missing.

Rating:
Summary: help please
Review: okay, i haven't read the book or seen the movie, but i really want to know if the movie is based on the book or the book based on the movie, because i always do the original first... so i watched texas chainsaw massacre before i read it, and i need to know which one was made first of the butterfly effect! please help me, email me if you know at [e-mail].

Rating:
Summary: Greatness
Review: Soooooo, Good. See the move then read the book, it makes it easier to read casue you havefaces to the names and that makes it better plue the book has more details and is better if you missed te small details of the story, plus with the book you can "rewind or fast forward stop or slow down anything" J/K

Rating:
Summary: The Bradbury Effect (Not Butterfly)
Review: The butterfly effect refers to the interconnectedness of the world. In other words, a butterfly flapping its wings in China could cause a hurricane on the other side of the world. But this book really deals with the Bradbury Effect as in his A Sound of Thunder where the death of a butterfly in the distant path has unknowable effects on the present.

In this book we have a character with a very messed-up life. Not only is his family dysfunctional (dad is in the nut house), but he has blackouts and does very disturbing things.

The book takes a long time to get started by filling in tons of background history. Eventually we get to the point where our character learns he can effect things in the past. Usually to disastrous effects. He keeps trying to correct things but they keep getting worse.

So, will he be able to make things better? Unfortunately two things stand in his way. One is that "time travel" is bad for his brain. The other is that people think he is crazy and want to lock him up.

So we wind up with a series of bad lives that we stop caring about after a while. We also learn a bit about his talent (although not enough). Finally we get a cute, romantic-comedy-style ending.

But my big question is if he had total blackouts, how was he able to write about the events in his journals? We don't know how much of the events he managed to transcribe, but at least with the video camera incident we do see that he wrote about things he didn't remember and then didn't remember he wrote about them. Too weak for me.

This is a long book for a novelization of a movie aimed at this audience and it just doesn't work or interest. I am sure it could work for readers who don't care about the details (sort of like viewers who made Armageddon successful). As a movie novelization, the author obviously did some work to fill out the story. I can only suspect that the movie has to rush through many of the events in the book.

I give it three stars for the author's efforts to fill out the story (it's not his fault the story didn't work in the first place).

Rating:
Summary: The Bradbury Effect (Not Butterfly)
Review: The butterfly effect refers to the interconnectedness of the world. In other words, a butterfly flapping its wings in China could cause a hurricane on the other side of the world. But this book really deals with the Bradbury Effect as in his A Sound of Thunder where the death of a butterfly in the distant path has unknowable effects on the present.

In this book we have a character with a very messed-up life. Not only is his family dysfunctional (dad is in the nut house), but he has blackouts and does very disturbing things.

The book takes a long time to get started by filling in tons of background history. Eventually we get to the point where our character learns he can effect things in the past. Usually to disastrous effects. He keeps trying to correct things but they keep getting worse.

So, will he be able to make things better? Unfortunately two things stand in his way. One is that "time travel" is bad for his brain. The other is that people think he is crazy and want to lock him up.

So we wind up with a series of bad lives that we stop caring about after a while. We also learn a bit about his talent (although not enough). Finally we get a cute, romantic-comedy-style ending.

But my big question is if he had total blackouts, how was he able to write about the events in his journals? We don't know how much of the events he managed to transcribe, but at least with the video camera incident we do see that he wrote about things he didn't remember and then didn't remember he wrote about them. Too weak for me.

This is a long book for a novelization of a movie aimed at this audience and it just doesn't work or interest. I am sure it could work for readers who don't care about the details (sort of like viewers who made Armageddon successful). As a movie novelization, the author obviously did some work to fill out the story. I can only suspect that the movie has to rush through many of the events in the book.

I give it three stars for the author's efforts to fill out the story (it's not his fault the story didn't work in the first place).

Rating:
Summary: help please
Review: This book is one of the best books I've read in a long time. It makes you wonder what you would do if you were Evan Treborn if you had his life.

When Evan was younger he began to write notebooks. Now those notebooks come in handy when he needs to go in the past to save his only love, Kayleigh Miller. His life is turned upside down when he blocked out all of his extreme emotional moments of the past. Now he must live through them where he can pause, slow down, rewind, and fast forward. He promised her he'd be back for her but know he must decide how to let go.