A ended up reading this in 5th grade because I loved the movie so much I want to experience the story again but did not have the DVD. The film does such a great job at adopting the vibe of this book that I really think they go together and compliment each other quite nice. The only reason I was able to make it through this book at a young age is because I basically played game of spot the difference during each chapter to see what was different of what more details the book added. I recall really enjoying the extra (if not drawn out) parts and inner monologues during the God Thumb saga that the movie (understandably) took out. All in all easily one of my favorite movies, books, and all around stories