Very different from the movie. In the movie, the focus is much more on bullying and how the Oskar-Eli relationship helps Oskar deal with his tormentors. The book extends the focus to include more complete views of peripheral characters. The bullying storyline, while still present, is not as prominent as in the movie and there is a lot more pedophilia, genital mutilation, gender confusion, sections narrated by a frightened squirrel, and even a masturbating zombie. Swedish literature, or at least the half-dozen books I've read, is odd.