I'll note that I haven't seen the movie yet, but I plan to after having read the book. The story was really great, though often sad. One thing that stands out about this book is that the ending is perfect. I won't go into details/spoilers, but most books either end too soon or too late, or they find some other way to leave the reader unsatisfied; but The Color Purple avoids all these defects. I also really enjoyed how plot-driven the book was. Something was always happening, which made the book a very quick read.