A review by circlesofflame
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming

3.0

I had no idea the book was so different from the film. In the book, you have some of the same elements, the car, Potts' creation of sweets sold to the sweet producer, but we also get the twins' mother, more intuitive actions from the car to take them on adventures, a cave full of explosives and a French gangster plot for the children to foil.

The book should be considered on its own merits and, if you do so, it's a nice adventure story with unexpected details thrown into the mix. However, it's really difficult to separate the reading experience to that enjoyed when watching the well-known adaptation and I think with that comparison it fares poorly. I usually wouldn't say this of a film that really takes the bare bones of a story to make something entirely different, but I think it works. The film is stronger than the book in my opinion and even the able narration of David Tennant can't make me consider it more highly.