Which is better, the book or the movie?

Many readers are probably already aware that the movie The Hunger Games, based on the book by Suzanne Collins, will open in March of 2012. Note: The second title in the series, Catching Fire, is scheduled to open in 2013.

For those who prefer to read a book before seeing the movie or television version (to determine whether or not it was cast and filmed correctly!) here are a few other books to read in order to be ready for their screen versions:

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Jonathan Safran Foer: A young boy searches New York for the lock that matches a mysterious key that his father, who died in the 9/11 attack, had left hidden in his belongings.

One for the Money - Janet Evanovich: Stephanie Plum will be played by Katherine Heigl in the movie of the first mystery in the series.

The Corrections - Jonathan Franzen: HBO will produce a pilot, which Franzen will co-write, for a series based on this book. Ewan McGregor will star in the role of Chip, the middle son.

Great Expectations - Charles Dickens (currently filming): This classic is being turned into a movie and a BBC miniseries that will be on Masterpiece Theater. Both versions have given the story a new ending, causing much controversy. Did they ruin it?  Read the book first and you can decide!

Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy: Shooting has begun, with film stars Keira Knightly and Jude Law. It is directed by Joe Wright (who also directed Atonement and Pride and Prejudice).

On the Road - Jack Kerouac: In this classic book of the Beat Generation, Kerouac writes in his improvisational, stream-of-consciousness style in the early 1950s, becoming the voice of a new generation. He typed the book in three weeks on a single long scroll of paper. (The movie stars Kristen Stewart, Kirsten Dunst, and Viggo Mortensen.)  

Big Sur - Jack Kerouac: The book tells the story of Kerouac’s alcoholism and breakdown on the heels of his sudden fame, and his retreat to a cabin in Big Sur; the movie is in production and expected out sometime in 2012.

Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie: (Directed by Deepa Mehta, famous for her Elements Trilogy: Fire, Earth and Water.) The film version of Rushdie’s historical novel about India’s independence from British colonialism is expected in October of 2012. The book won a Booker Prize, and a Best of the Booker prize.