From Maus to more Star Wars, the books we want to see made into movies in 2020
It’s always exciting when you hear a book you love will be adapted for the big screen. Here are the stories the YP team would like to see filmmakers tackle
With so many books being made into movies, here's the ones we'd like to see adapted for the big screen.I really hope Anne Rice’s The Wolf Gift Chronicles would be made into a movie. This series is similar to the gothic writer’s earlier works in that it follows supernatural characters that face moral dilemmas and personal struggles as they strive to understand their place in the human world.
I really enjoyed previous book-to-movie and TV adaptations of Rice’s titles, and I’m sure a live-action version of The Wolf Gift will be just as visually stunning and intriguing.
Doris Wai, Multimedia Editor
Conn Iggulden’s five-book Conqueror series is just begging to be made into a binge-worthy TV series. The story follows the truly remarkable and epic life of Genghis Khan and his scions. I think the first book of the series, in particular, Wolf of the Plains, would make a great feature film. And I’m sure there will be insatiable demand for the others to be adapted, too.
There have been a few attempts at capturing the life of the world’s greatest conqueror but none come close to Iggulden’s sweeping narrative with compelling characters. Yes, it takes a bit of creative licence, but that’s why it’s called historical fiction, not a textbook.
Susan Ramsay, Editor
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I’d pick The Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Japanese mystery writer Soji Shimada. The two main characters, Mitarai and Ishioka, play off each other wonderfully with their contrasting personalities, and the way the multiple murder mysteries unfold is ingenious. Because parts of the book take place in early 20th-century Japan, I think it would make a visually- stunning film.
Jamie Lam, Special Projects Editor
The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict. It tells the true story of Hollywood actress Hedy Lamarr, an Austrian Jew who was married to a man who sold arms to the Nazis. She fled to America, became an actress and helped develop a torpedo system for the second world war that would eventually become the basis for WiFi. It’s a fascinating story which I think would play out well on film.
Dannie Higginbotham, Web Editor
I’ve always wanted to watch an on-screen adaptation of Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman. I devoured those books as a teenager, and found them so compelling and thought-provoking. Although the BBC have already created a Noughts and Crosses TV series, I still feel that in today’s climate, where politics and pop culture often collide, it would make a great feature film.
Rhea Mogul, Junior Reporters Manager
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I would love to see The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets by Eva Rice adapted into a film. It’s the story of a group of friends growing up in 1950s Britain. While their elders struggle to move on from the events of the second world war, these teens are eager to embrace a heady future fuelled by rock ’n’ roll and all other forms of Americana. In addition to its enchanting plot, this novel’s larger-than-life characters and setting are practically made for the big screen.
With so many fabulous houses, outfits and parties, the film version would be like Downton Abbey meets The Great Gatsby meets Grease.
Charlotte Ames-Ettridge, Sub-editor
I’d like one of the old Star Wars novels from the pre-Disney era made into a film with today’s CGI technology. The Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn might be a standout choice, but there is a lot of other good material in the list.
Instead of having to worry about making a huge, successful blockbuster, the novels from that time were focused on telling a good story without thinking too much about mass appeal. I’m sure there would be a bunch of animation studios lining up to take on the project.
Wong Tsui-kai, Web reporter
This is tricky because most of the books I’ve read have either already been turned into movies or are self-improvement books ... but one I think ought to be made into a film is Haruki Murakami’s Kafka on the Shore.
I’d love to see how a director would interpret the strange and fantastical world Murakami built for the story. Talking cats, fish falling from the sky, and murderous spirits in an anime-style animation ... who wouldn’t want to see that on the big screen?
Nicole Moraleda, Sub-editor
Seeing as all the Poirot and Miss Marple stories have been adapted for screen already, I’ll have to go with a murder mystery series from a similar era: Robin Stevens’ Murder Most Unladylike. This is the first in a series of mystery novels set in the 1930s, starring a pair of schoolgirl detectives. I think the combo of boarding school hijinks and whodunnits would be brilliant on the big screen.
Karly Cox, Deputy Editor
I’d pick Shoe Dog by Nike’s founder Phil Knight. I’m not the first person to think this best- selling memoir has great potential for a movie. In fact, Netflix announced in July 2018 that they had plans to invite Knight to work with Academy Award-nominated producer Frank Marshall to bring the story of Nike to the big screen.
In his memoir, the man behind the swoosh reveals the inside story of how the company began as an intrepid start-up and later evolved into one of the most iconic sports brands in the world. It is a fascinating tale, not only for businesses who hope to replicate their success, but also for those who love the brand but know little about its history.
Kelly Ho, Reporter
Maus by Art Spiegelman. It’s a black-and-white graphic novel about the author’s father, who survived the Holocaust. The book portrays all the Jews as mice, and Germans as cats. It’d be very interesting to see how a director would incorporate all the vivid graphics and animals in the book into a feature film.
With such a vibrant and turbulent plot, I’d love to see how music and colour in the film would take the story to the next level.
Joanne Ma, Reporter