Sex and the City: Book vs. TV Series

Book: Written by Candace Bushnell

TV Series: Produced by Darren Star (HBO) from 1998-2004

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Ever since I was first introduced to the TV Series of Sex and the City, I was immediately hooked. I loved the four main characters, I loved the stories in each episode, I loved the fashion, and I loved New York City.

 

For those who don’t know what Sex and the City is about, it is about four best friends who live through the daily drama of a New York City lifestyle.  The four main characters are Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte; each successful in their own right, but when living in the big apple, there is always something bound to go wrong.  There is a main focus on Carrie though; a journalist who writes her own column based on her current life situations and those of her friends. This column is centered on each show and we often see her in the TV show on her laptop typing up articles.

What I do like about the book is that the New York City lifestyle is more focused on, not just with Carrie, Miranda, and Samantha, but with other characters mentioned as well (in the book, Charlotte is rarely mentioned). Characters are drawn into conversations about life in the city in a majority of the book and as a reader; it helped me establish a better sense of what it would be like to live there.  In earlier episodes of the show, this too does happen, but as the producers of the show make more series, this tends to happen much less, if at all.

The first TV series does follow some aspects from the book and when either reading or watching the show (depending on which you do first) you can see this quite clearly. The characters on the TV series are like the ones in the book which is something I really like the show as it is entertaining seeing how the producers of the show have attempted to portray them on TV.  As the making of more series happens, more characters are introduced. Not all of them are as important as the four girls, but some of them do play a big role and end up on the show until the end of the final series.  

In most cases, I prefer the book to the film or whatever it has been adapted to, but in this case, I actually prefer the TV series. I did like reading the book but I felt the TV series made it much better. With the TV series, I felt I could connect more with the four main characters and understand why they do what they do in order to get by. With the book, at times I felt as if there were too many characters and it made it difficult to engage with specific characters.  The blurb on my edition of the book mentions Carrie, Samantha, and Miranda and how they try to get on in their life, but they aren't seen much together, especially as a three. I felt as if Carrie is only really important towards about three quarters through the book, unlike in the book where she is highly focused.

I am glad that I read the book because I loved the TV series and so being able to see what it was like was a big enjoyment for me. Also, because I had read the two prequels of the book and series (not published till much later though), I wanted to see what this one would be like.  Knowing that I have read the book, I can happily state that I have read it, and seen the shows (as well as the two movies). As I have said, I do prefer the TV series more to the book, I think reading the book is something you should do if you like the show. One thing I would say though before reading the book is that don’t use your knowledge of the show as in a lot of the ways, the book is different and so might ruin the reading for you.