Book and Film Class: The Bookshop

Penelope Fitzgerald’s The Bookshop, and Bill Nighy,
Emily Mortimer and Patricia Clarkson in the 2018
film of The Bookshop.

Have you ever read a book, and then watched the
movie of the same title (or vice versa) and wondered
how the two complemented each other, or perhaps
did not even seem to be about the same plot and
characters? Osher is initiating a new offering—Book
and Film Club, starting with a discussion about
how Penelope Fitzgerald’s novel (really a novella),
The Bookshop, published in 1978, is revealed in the
Bill Nighy and Emily Mortimer movie, released in
2018. Both media emphasize the insular “tyranny”
of British small-town denizens and class struggles
in the 1950s as well as the unforeseen difficulties
of starting up a new bookish enterprise by a warm-
hearted widow when other shopkeepers in the area
resent her effort. Both the book and film share a
common quiet elegance with pathos and humor.
Come to class having already read the book and
watched the movie and compare notes in a lively
conversation with other bibliophiles and film lovers.