I like movies and books about quirky smalltown characters

/ Lisa R. Howeler

I love stories about small town or rural folk (as some might say instead of people) and maybe that is because I grew up in a small town and have interacted with so many interesting real life, small-town characters over the years.

Books or movies that feature interesting or “down home” characters with a bit of a quirk are my kinds of books and movies.


A few movies that scratch this itch for me include The Quiet Man, Fisherman’s Friends, The Englishman Who Went Up A Hill and Came Down a Mountain (that’s a mouthful), Road Less Traveled, Steel Magnolias, Pure Country, Forever My Girl (an overused trope is in this plot, but it was handled better than most) and a little known movie called Sweetland. Some of these movies were, of course, books before they were movies.

What I don’t like, however, is how Hollywood often portrays people who live in small towns as “backward”, weird, uneducated, stupid, close-minded, or like they are “yokels” or “hillbillies.”

What they don’t seem to get is that when they do that, they are the close-minded ones and maybe even a bit backward themselves. I actually think people who live in small towns are a little bit more grounded and normal than those who live in cities.

Books that fill this love of smalltown characters for me include the series of books by James Herriot (All Creatures Great and Small, etc.), the Mitford series by Jan Karon, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the Miss Julia series by Ann B. Ross, the Home to Harmony series, The Cat Who series by Lilian Jackson Braun, and the Anne of Green Gables series.


Are you a fan of books and movies about small towns or do books about larger cities interest you more? Which movies or books featuring each location are your favorites?

8 thoughts on “I like movies and books about quirky smalltown characters”

  1. Pingback: Sunday Bookends: Cold weather continues and good books lined up and finished | Boondock Ramblings

  3. The Quiet Man is a favorite of my husband’s family. There are some epic lines, lol! The one we seem to quote the most is “What a fine, steady hand ye have.” Usually when dessert is making the rounds.

    I also prefer stories about small town life, although I gotta admit there are exceptions like “You’ve Got Mail” which is definitely big city. But…small town style bookstore, so maybe that counts? 😀 😀

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    • Yes, I do like some “big city” movies too and I agree about the small town style bookstore. That had a charming feel to it, I think.

      I know some would consider The Quiet Man sexist, but they don’t understand it and why John Wayne does what he did at the end. He had to show her he loved her in the way she wanted him to show her. There are so many great lines in that one for sure.

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  4. I love books with small towns, probably because I’ve lived in or near big cities all my life. The hustle and bustle is exhausting and the people can, frankly, be pretty mean and rude (as well as absolutely nuts), so it’s really nice to sit back with a group of close knit people who are grounded and welcoming. Probably why I enjoy your stories so much! Ironically, Hollywood gets a lot wrong about big cities. Like, where’s the constant traffic and rude drivers when it’s set in LA?! And only older people will randomly talk to people, so zero opportunity for meet cutes.

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    • I guess the crazy people would make a good story too. Haha! And right – people seem to just glare at each other in cities – how do they even fall for each other. *wink*

      I do like some movies with big cities but I can’t really think of any books that I like that take place in the city.

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      • Haha, the glare was really appealing! I’m more interested in knowing how they actually meet each other; everyone’s too busy staring at a phone here.

        I can’t really think of many books I enjoyed that were set in a big city, either, though I do have a soft spot for ones set in LA. I’ve read plenty set in NYC, too, but I think the characters had a tendency to run away from it.

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