Books to Read Before They Become Movies

Tarzan has been a cultural icon for more than a century, though the he-man "me Tarzan, you Jane" routine may feel outdated for the 21st century. The makers of The Legend of Tarzan, out July 1, get around this problem by offering a civilized—but still hyper-buff—version of the jungle-bred hero (Alexander Skarsgard), who's happily settled down and married to Jane (Margot Robbie) until he's forced to revisit his homeland. Our advice? Return to Burroughs' original 1914 novel; not just for a rip-snorting read full of action and snapped-off sentences, but for the backstory on Tarzan and Jane's early romance, which has some surprisingly poignant real talk about whether a high-class British lady can get serious about a man so smart and strong and yet so shirtless. ("Civilization would become irksome to you." "You could not be happy with—an ape.")