Both the book and film are set in Los Angeles and tell the story of a homeless paranoid schizophrenic named Nathaniel Ayers. In the film The Soloist directed by Joe Wright, it is explained what happened to Nathaniel and his love for music; some of these events happen in the book; Steve Lopez's soloist. Nathaniel loves music but has a mental illness, while Mr. Lopez is a columnist for the LA Times. Even though both the book and the film tell the same story, it is the book that is much more effective because it provides more characterization and detailed plot. In the book Nathaniel was a Juilliard student and played the double bass. “I was there for a couple of years (..) Oh, I didn't play the violin, I played the double bass” (Lopez 38). Nathaniel lives and plays on the streets with his two-stringed violin. Just like in the movie he went to Juilliard and played the double bass. Nathaniel plays the violin in front of a statue. Although Nathaniel is dressed too cleanly to be homeless in the movie, they make him look like a psychopath and people should stay away from schizophrenics. Mr. Lopez's character in the movie is a jerk to Nathaniel. He doesn't seem to want a friendship with Nathaniel; he just wants to help him with his music and his mental illness. “I just needed to know that our friendship still meant something” (Lopez 264). While in the book Mr. Lopez is a friendly guy and values ​​his friendship with Nathaniel. The book follows the plot while the film misses key events in the lives of Nathaniel and Steve Lopez. In the book Mr. Lopez is a husband and has a daughter named Caroline “(..) While trying to be a columnist, husband and father (Lopez 95). The film begins with Steve Lopez falling from a...half a sheet of paper...a specific scene in the film might lead people to view schizophrenics as crazy and incapable of controlling themselves. Without reading the book the film will probably be difficult to understand. The film does not include or go into detail about the major incidents that occur in the book. Nathaniel and Steve Lopez live in two completely different worlds. Mr. Lopez believed that he would just write one article about Nathaniel and be done; he didn't think he would gain a new friend. Mr. Lopez turns to Nathaniel to try to get help for him, but finds that he won't get better and all he can offer him is his friendship. The film is missing a couple of important scenes that were in the book. The movie ran too long and the scenes were all over the place. I would recommend the book because it is more detailed than the movie and stays true to the plot.