Books I Can See Becoming Movies

With so many books being adapted into films, it makes it harder to find time to read the book first, something you will see in my last few posts.  It seems like film producers can't seem to find ideas elsewhere, so they turn to the written novels.  And now there are novels that seem ripe for movie adaptations, something that might just come true.

I recently Googled the phrase "books that should be moves" and other variant phrases and came up with results such as the one here.   Unfortunately I do not know about many of the books mentioned in this link or the one contained on the link, so I can't say I agree on any of those.

However, I have recently read a few books that I can see be made into movies.  So I'd like to offer my list of books that should be made into movies.  I have read all of these, so I will be prepared for the movie, should it ever materialize.

1. Summer Rental by Mary Kay Andrews.   Three women who have been friends since Catholic grammar school are renting a summer house in North Carolina.  One has just lost her job at a bank, another is betrayed by her husband and has another problem looming ahead, and the other is insecure about herself and the man she loves.  Along the way one falls for the landlord, who is about to lose everything he's ever cared about.  A stranger who's on the run from her abusive husband then rents out a room with the others, using an alias.   All five begin questioning what they thought the knew about life and are looking for changes and a path to forgiveness.
The plot of this one just screams movie, something I thought the whole time I was reading this one.

2. Thin, Rich, Pretty by Beth Harbison.  Two women who were once outsiders at a summer camp 20 year earlier and their camp nemesis, a once-spoiled and rich girl are the focus of these.  Holly, one of the two,  was plump and desired to be an artist and the other, Nicola, wanted to be pretty.  While at summer camp in the 80s, the two pulled a prank on their rich and spoiled nemesis, Lexi, something that has repercussions two decades later. Now 20 years later, Lexi is totally broke, her father having left all his possessions to her stepmother, who keeps everything, including Lexi's childhood home. Lexi must find a job and new place to live, but has trouble doing so without previous work or rental experience.  Holly is now a gallery owner about to get married, and Nicola a near-famous actress.  The title refers to Holly's desire to be thin, Nicola's to be pretty and Lexi's desire to be rich.
Beth Harbison's book "Shoe Addicts Anonymous" is already being made into a movie. I have yet to read that one, but see this book as a possible film. again, it has a plot that seems film-worthy.

3.  Cleo: The Cat Who Mended a Family by Helen Brown.  A woman doesn't plan on taking home one of her friend's kittens until she sees the smallest one of the litter.  A tragedy hits the family just before the kitten is delivered to their home, and the woman isn't sure if she can keep the cat until she sees something that she is sure has vanished from the family forever.   As a result the kitten becomes the family pet.

This one reminded me a bit of "Marley and Me," and seems to have the same sad film factor that the movie based on "Marley" had.  

4.  Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper.   Though Gwen Cooper already had two cats, shoe fell in love with the eyeless kitten she saw at her vet office.  Though everyone though he'd be a underachiever,  the kitten eagerly  became friends with all who crossed his path.  One very gripping scene in the book takes place during the 9/11 attacks when Homer and the other two cats are trapped alone for days in an apartment building near the World Trade Center.

I feel the same way about this one as I did about "Cleo" and "Marley." All are touching pet tales, and this one and "Cleo" would make wonderful family films.

5. Goodnight, Tweetheart by Teresa Medeiros.  Sort of an epistolary novel for the Twitter age, this book focuses on writer Abby Donovan, who's putting of things including working on her next novel (she nearly won a  Pulitzer for her first one) When her publicist signs her up for a Twitter account, she becomes hooked and gets taken under the wing of one of her followers.

This could be the "You've Got Mail" for Twitter.  AOL and Facebook have already gotten films, so why not Twitter?

6. The "Night World" Series by L.J. Smith.  Her "Vampire Diaries" books have already been adapted into a TV show, and this series also deserves some adaptation.  All nine books focus on members of the Night World,  where vampires, shapeshifters, and witches live among humans without their knowledge.  The protagonist of each book (always a teenage girl) faces challenges including the soulmate principle.

I can really see this as films, though it would be challenging since there are nine books, with a tenth soon to be out as the conclusion.  Perhaps a cable movie series might work in this case.   Or the first three books can be combined into the first film, the next two in the second one, and so on.  



This is all I have come up with.  I'm sure these aren't the only books I'll find film-worthy.  I'd planned on including "The Host" by Stephenie Meyer, but while Googling, I discovered it is actually being adapted.   This I had not known previously. I have the feeling I'll feel that way about more stuff I have yet to read.  But at least I have read all of these before the possibly hit the big screen.