I absolutely love the film, and so we started the book. As one would expect, it has a great "muchness" (thanks, Hatter/Depp) than the movie has, with nice details on Inigo, Fezzik, Prince Humperdinck, and Buttercup. And yet, while I would rate the film a high four, I am giving the book only a solid three. This is, chiefly, because they are really different things. 
 The film I love represents a pure, idealistic children's tale story-book adventure. It's a simple, old genre, but done with such flare, purity, and character that it lives endlessly in the memory of many fans. The book has at least as much flare and character; however, it is NOT a children's fairy tale. Rather, it is satiric almost to the point of slap stick in a world so intentionally crossed by the author's constant interjections, contradictions, and random elaborations that it is difficult to get any fixed point on the time, place, or how serious to take anything in the book. At the end, I only knew one thing--we had swords, boats, blue jeans, and public schools. 
 (view spoiler)[ 
 For those not in the know, the references to the original author Morganstern are all a gimmick (more kindly, a literary device). In addition to the story movie-lovers are familiar with, which is evidently not Goldman's first priority in this book, Goldman establishes a mock-dialogue between a false self (complete with imagined psychiatrist wife) and the Florin (also imaginary) satirist/original author Morganstern; this, evidently, is the central focus of the author, and not any tale of swords, wits, courage, and true love. Placed side-by-side, Goldman struck me as, at best, poking fun and, at worst, outright mocking the very things we love the movie for. (hide spoiler)] 
 It isn't a bad book, and many people have loved it; however, it is not at all the same kind of story as the movie. Who would I recommend it to? To those who enjoy quirky, anachronistic satire a la Dave Barry. Who might enjoy it less? Those who want to get immersed in a story of romantic fantasy adventure.