I loved the books in the trilogy. I actually felt like Dragon Tattoo was the strongest, because it sort of stood as a stand-alone, while Fire and Hornet’s Nest could’ve been one great, long brick of a book, because Hornet’s Nest is a literal from-one-second-to-the-next continuation of the events of Fire.

I liked the Hollywood movie; I was especially struck with how well they cast Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara as Kalle Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander. I was very displeased with the truncation of the Harriet storyline; I felt like the could’ve gone with the novel, and had the situation play out the same way as it did in the novel. There were other, smaller alterations that I didn’t mind so much, but that was the one that bothered me the most.

I am from North Carolina, United States.

Posted by Alvie Fletcher in Charlotte ,

Vale-

While I, too, enjoyed the books and found them hard to put down, I have a number of criticisms for you to consider for your thesis.

I agree that the Drgaon Tattoo is the strongest because it really is the only stand-alone book of the three. But, it (lke all the rest) could have used a good editor. The first 80 pages or so should have been eliminated or at least pared way down. So should many of Larsson’s stylistic quirks (which I’ve parodied in my book “The Girl Who Fished With A Worm”). To me books two and three were really one long book cut in half to avoid a 1,000 page novel. They were gripping but, again, could have benefitted from a good editor. The key (and glue) to the books’ success was Lisbeth but she disappeared almost completely in Fire and played a secondary role (or close to it) in Hornet’s Nest.

I’m not sure what the concept is for your thesis but I’d suggest you review your idea of including the movies. There’s plenty to explore with the books and a comparison with the films mught take your eye of the ball.

I enjoyed all the films and thought they were serious attempts to capture the spirit of Larsson’s work, if not every detail. Most movies can’t encapsulate the sprawl of a 600 page novel in two hours or so. For some reason I liked the US film the best, I guess because I thought it gave Lisbeth a more multi-dimensional character than the Swedish versions although she was portrayed well in those, too.

I live in Pennsylvania in the United States and write fiction and poetry. I hope this helps get you started in the right direction. The rest is up to you.

Best of luck.

Harry

Posted by Harry Groome in Villanova, Pennsylvania ,

The first time I read Moby Dick my intent was to find out about whaling–I was into whales in the 5th and 6th grade. I didn’t follow the hunt and the drama of Ahabs nuttiness.

The next time I was in college and was a bit put off by how long it took to get into the story–maybe because I had read a lot about whaling.

My point is that the second and third books which would have been “tightened-up” by any publisher and much that beggers your patience. Things change when the author is dead. No one volunteers to be blamed for denying the fans.

But when you read the books a second time–well for me–I was glad to linger among the shopping lists and the drunken nights in Gibralter just because I wanted to remain in the only world where these people exist.

Posted by John Ross in Oakland, CA USA ,

Where can I purchase a replacement book cover/jacket for my hard cover of the Girl with the dragon Tattoo?

Posted by Leah Cholette in Romulus ,