The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler

The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’ve enjoyed the movie for a long time but just recently read the book for the first time. The story seems to resonate a lot with me as I see a lot of Macon Leary in myself. Even more so after completing the book as it goes inside Macon deeper than the film did.

I’ll give the film credit for following the book very well. Obviously scenes or storylines were condensed or dropped completely. Many times reading the dialogue in book I remember it verbatim from the movie so I think they stayed as close to the book as possible.

Macon is the expert at avoiding anything uncomfortable or confrontational.
He keeps to himself and rarely expresses a desire or makes a tough decision for himself. Much of his life seems to be just going with the flow and letting others decide stuff.

Muriel Pritchard is pretty much the opposite. She’s open and shares everything up front. She is resourceful and hardworking. She is fiercely protective of her young boy. Her character is a slightly more harsh than the movie version but only by a little.

It is a heartwarming story with a quirky sense of humor at times. I feel like I learned a bit about relationships and life in general from. I’m sure I’ll revisit this book in the future as I seem so attached to the story.

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