Diksha Sundriyal
‘Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between’ is the story of Clare and Aidan, who decide when to break up before they get together. They like each other’s company, and grow to care for one another much more than they’d expected at the beginning. So, when it comes the time to part ways for good, they become conflicted about their feelings. The film follows their last day together, while they reconsider their choices. It is based on the book of the same name by Jennifer E. Smith. While the basic storyline is the same, a lot of changes were made while adapting it for the screen. Here are the five major changes between ‘Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between’ movie and book. SPOILERS AHEAD
5. Clare’s Parents Are Not Divorced
In the film, Clare reveals her parents were high school sweethearts, who then got divorced. This led to her and her mom moving around a lot before they come back to Lakeview. The splitting of her parents is the reason Clare doesn’t want to pursue a relationship this young. In the book, however, Clare’s parents are still together. It is their history that makes her wary of a high school romance. It turns out that both of them had been married to their high school sweethearts before they met each other. This convinces Clare that it is better to wait for a serious relationship rather than clinging to the one that you had when you were still a teenager.
4. A Different Meet-Cute
In the film, Aidan and Clare meet at a Halloween party, which leads to the beginning of their whirlwind romance with an expiration date. This is also where we discover Aidan’s singing skills, and the fact that Clare has returned to town after a long time. In the book, however, they meet in a science class. Aidan is the new kid in school, and Clare notes his red hair, freckles, and ridiculous height. They warm up to each other soon and hang out with their friends a couple of times before getting together.
3. Clare Plans the Final Itinerary
Even though Clare makes it clear that she wants to end the relationship before going to college, Aidan tries to change her mind. He creates a perfect itinerary for their last day together, hoping that she will reconsider her decision when reminded of the good old days. In the book, it is Clare who makes a detailed itinerary of their final day together. This doesn’t mean that she wants to change her mind, but she appears more sentimental than Aidan when it comes to their time together. Still, he is the one who wishes to stay together.
2. Aidan is Not A Singer
The main conflict in Aidan’s life is his career. He wants to be a singer, but he claims that his parents are hell-bent on him pursuing medicine like them. It later comes to light that he’d been demotivated by his rejection from Berklee. Clare is angered by the fact that he didn’t tell her that he’d even applied to Berklee. In the end, however, Clare convinces him to give his dreams another shot, for which he goes to LA.
In the book, Aidan has nothing to do with singing. In fact, he is a lacrosse player who secures a place for himself at UCLA because he likes their program better. The conflict with his parents comes from his father’s wish to see him at Harvard, for which he never applies. This leads to a fight between him and his father, and Clare, too, feels bad about not being in the loop, considering that they used to share every little thing with each other.
1. Aidan Has A Girlfriend
In the movie, Clare and Aidan part, spending a year away from each other, exploring their new lives. The montage shows them so invested in their dreams that they don’t seem to date at all. In the end, when they meet again, it is understood that both of them are single. In the book, however, things take a bit longer for them to entertain the possibility of getting back together.
The next Aidan and Clare see each other after their break-up is when they are home during the holidays. Their reunion leads to a kiss, but things are complicated because Aidan has a girlfriend in California. He stays with his girlfriend for a little more time, completely cutting off from Clare. Eventually, however, he comes around and asks Clare if the timing is right for them to get back together.
Read More: Where and What Year Does Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between Take Place?
