Libraries Staff & Faculty Pick Favorite Books Adapted to Film
by Shannon Baldridge | Feature image from "Frankenstein" (1931)
August 9th is National Book Lovers Day and we've once again reached out to all the bibliophiles who work at the University Libraries. Previously, we listed our favorites in a reading list spanning various genres, reading levels, and authorship. This year came with one caveat: the book suggestions must have been adapted to film.
Works of literature hit us differently than their on-screen counterparts and the latter doesn't always stay true to the original work, take George Orwell's "Animal Farm" for example. Some books find a way of including the reader in the story, which may be harder to express on the silver screen. Controversies emerge as to which is better (book v. movie) and should the book be read first, or vice versa. This may vary widely depending on who you ask and the book or movie in question.
The following reading/watching list is by no means comprehensive, feel free to reach out if you think we may have missed anything or ask questions regarding our catalog. Most of these titles are available either physically or online. Check availability by clicking the yellow buttons under each listing or stop by the Video Collection room on the 2nd floor of Hunt Library. Also, did you know that your Andrew ID grants you access to hundreds of streaming movies from all of the major studios? Browse these titles and more at digitalcampus.swankmp.net.
And now for your Feature Presentation.
The Exorcist
Blatty, William Peter (1971)
"As a fan of the horror genre, it does not get any better than this! Both the novel and film were game changers in the genre and in popular culture. The novel is more in-depth and covers the backstory of several of the characters that the film just didn't have the time to explore. I prefer the movie over the novel - it is my favorite movie of all time, and does the makeup by Dick Smith get any better? I'd argue absolutely not! Both are CLASSICS that will never die." - Ryan Splenda, Librarian
Originally published in 1971, "The Exorcist" remains one of the most controversial novels ever written and went on to become a literary phenomenon: It spent fifty-seven weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, seventeen consecutively at number one. Inspired by a true story of a child’s demonic possession in the 1940s, William Peter Blatty created an iconic novel that focuses on Regan, the eleven-year-old daughter of a movie actress residing in Washington, D.C. A small group of overwhelmed yet determined individuals must rescue Regan from her unspeakable fate, and the drama that ensues is gripping and unfailingly terrifying.
Two years after its publication, "The Exorcist" was, of course, turned into a wildly popular motion picture, garnering ten Academy Award nominations. On opening day of the film, lines of the novel’s fans stretched around city blocks. In Chicago, frustrated moviegoers used a battering ram to gain entry through the double side doors of a theater. In Kansas City, police used tear gas to disperse an impatient crowd who tried to force their way into a cinema. The three major television networks carried footage of these events; CBS’s Walter Cronkite devoted almost ten minutes to the story. "The Exorcist" was, and is, more than just a novel and a film: it is a true landmark.
Purposefully raw and profane, "The Exorcist" still has the extraordinary ability to disturb readers and cause them to forget that it is “just a story.” - Publisher's Description
Request Book Request Film Watch Online
Ready Player One
Cline, Ernest (2011)
"I'm a child of the 80's and all of the pop culture and gaming references were so fun, but the story is also easy to love in rooting for the underdog. We used RPO as our campus common read one year at K-State and some colleagues and I created an alternate reality game around it. We had about 500 players engage with us and got to meet Ernie when he came to campus in his DeLorean. He gave us a shout out by name during his talk which was awesome. The whole thing was the most fun I've had at work my whole career. Book over movie, all the way." - Joelle Pitts, Senior Associate Dean
In the year 2045, reality is an ugly place. The only time Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the OASIS, a vast virtual world where most of humanity spends their days. When the eccentric creator of the OASIS dies, he leaves behind a series of fiendish puzzles, based on his obsession with the pop culture of decades past. Whoever is first to solve them will inherit his vast fortune—and control of the OASIS itself. Then Wade cracks the first clue. Suddenly he’s beset by rivals who’ll kill to take this prize. The race is on—and the only way to survive is to win. - Publisher's Description
A Christmas Carol
Dickens, Charles (1843)
"My favorite book adapted into a movie is Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." I've read the book a handful of times and watched various versions of the story countless times! If I were to explain further as to why I like it so much, I would say it's because the lesson I get out of it is that it's never too late for anyone to change. No one is ever too old or too far gone. There is hope of redemption for even the worst people in the world. It sets up for a feel-good ending that can't be beat. I enjoy most adaptations to at least some extent, but my absolute favorite Scrooges are the following: Alistair Sim (1951), George C. Scott (1984), Michael Caine in "Muppets Christmas Carol" (1992), and Patrick Stewart (1999)." - Leah Zande, Materials Processing Coordinator
"A Christmas Carol" is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall on 19 December 1843. The novella met with instant success and critical acclaim. Carol tells the story of a bitter old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation into a gentler, kindlier man after visitations by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Yet to Come. The book was written at a time when the British were examining and exploring Christmas traditions from the past as well as new customs such as Christmas cards and Christmas trees.
Carol singing took a new lease on life during this time. Dickens' sources for the tale appear to be many and varied, but are, principally, the humiliating experiences of his childhood, his sympathy for the poor, and various Christmas stories and fairy tales. Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" was one of the greatest influences in rejuvenating the old Christmas traditions of England, but, while it brings to the reader images of light, joy, warmth and life, it also brings strong and unforgettable images of darkness, despair, coldness, sadness, and death. Scrooge himself is the embodiment of winter, and, just as winter is followed by spring and the renewal of life, so too is Scrooge's cold, pinched heart restored to the innocent goodwill he had known in his childhood and youth. "A Christmas Carol" remains popular—having never been out of print—and has been adapted many times to film, stage, opera, and other media. - Publisher's Description
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle-Stop Cafe
Flagg, Fannie (1987)
"The movie lost a lot of the backstory of the African American characters. Also, it took me years to forgive the confusing and unnecessary flip at the end that made Jessica Tandy’s (heterosexual) character seem to become Idgie. That aside, it was clear that Idgie and Ruth loved each other, which was daring to portray at the time. And the haunting score and the actors’ wonderful performances created an entire Southern small-town world for me." - Jan Hardy, Library Specialist
Folksy and fresh, endearing and affecting, "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe" is a now-classic novel about two women: Evelyn, who’s in the sad slump of middle age, and gray-headed Mrs. Threadgoode, who’s telling her life story. Her tale includes two more women—the irrepressibly daredevilish tomboy Idgie and her friend Ruth—who back in the thirties ran a little place in Whistle Stop, Alabama, offering good coffee, southern barbecue, and all kinds of love and laughter—even an occasional murder. And as the past unfolds, the present will never be quite the same again. - Publisher's Description
Dune
Herbert, Frank (1965)
"The mind-bending, time-warping, extra-spicy Duniverse created by Frank Herbert rivals any mythopoetic epic from ancient lore. Herbert's creation has stood the test of time because it calls to something innate to the human experience and much of the underlying themes in "Dune" are still very relevant today. In the mid 1970's, Alejandro Jodorowsky ambitiously attempted a film version of the classic sci-fi novel, but it unfortunately never came to fruition, often called "the greatest movie never made." David Lynch's 1984 adaptation left many fans unsatisfied and downright angry due to Lynch deviating from Herbert's original story. An ambitious attempt by director Denis Villeneuve has redeemed some of the original's essence, with part two coming out at the end of 2023. We must not fear." - Shannon Baldridge, Web & Digital Content Specialist
"I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain." ― Litany Against Fear, "Dune"
Frank Herbert’s classic masterpiece—a triumph of the imagination and one of the bestselling science fiction novels of all time. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, "Dune" is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, heir to a noble family tasked with ruling an inhospitable world where the only thing of value is the spice melange, a drug capable of extending life and enhancing consciousness.
Coveted across the known universe, melange is a prize worth killing for.... When House Atreides is betrayed, the destruction of Paul’s family will set the boy on a journey toward a destiny greater than he could ever have imagined. And as he evolves into the mysterious man known as Muad’Dib, he will bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream. A stunning blend of adventure and mysticism, environmentalism and politics, "Dune" won the first Nebula Award, shared the Hugo Award, and formed the basis of what is undoubtedly the grandest epic in science fiction. - Publisher's Description
Beautiful Creatures
Garcia, Kami; Stohl, Margaret (2009)
"Beautiful Creatures is a favorite book of mine that was frightfully (and I'm not trying to be punny) adapted into a movie. The book is the first in a series called Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. Unsurprisingly, the book is so much better, it's more detailed and aesthetically written than the movie portrays. What I admire most about the book is the development of the two main characters, Ethan Wate and Lena Duchannes. The authors mold the story in a way that captures Ethan and Lena's supernatural relationship flawlessly as it matures throughout the novels. At least from what I remember, their romantic relationship did not unfold or present itself as cheesy or childish -- though, I wonder if I'd feel the same as twenty-year-old me who read these novels! " - Lencia Beltran, Open Science Program Coordinator
Sixteen-year-old Ethan Wate lives in Gatlin, South Carolina, with his widowed father. Lena Duchannes is a mysterious girl with magical powers who appears in Ethan's recurring nightmares. Though she initially rebuffs his attempts at interacting with her, they eventually become friends despite harassment from other classmates that almost gets her expelled. Lena's uncle Macon Ravenwood also attempts to keep Ethan and Lena apart to protect them. Every member of Lena's family is a "Caster" with magical powers. On Lena's sixteenth birthday, she will be "claimed" as either a Light or Dark Caster, but she is terrified of becoming an evil Dark Caster.
Meanwhile, Ethan discovers a locket at Greenbrier plantation, that induces visions of Lena's ancestor Genevieve Duchannes and Ethan's ancestor Ethan Carter Wate, who were engaged during the Civil War. Through the locket, they discover that Genevieve tried to resurrect Ethan Carter Wate using the magical Book of Moons. Due to Genevieve's use of the spell, the Book has the ability to determine which of the Duchannes will be Light or Dark. Ethan and Lena find the Book of Moons in Genevieve's grave and study it for ways to prevent Lena from becoming Dark. Furthermore, Lena is continuously spiritually attacked by a Dark Caster named Sarafine, who is actually her mother. While the Duchannes cannot prevent the attacks, Ethan's presence seems to stop them.
Lena's sixteenth birthday is celebrated by Ethan, the Duchannes, and her classmates. Macon forbids Lena to attend the party set up by her classmates, but Lena sneaks out anyway and confesses her love to Ethan, who reciprocates. Sarafine reveals herself at the party, accompanied by incubus Hunting Ravenwood. Sarafine tells Lena that she will be able to Claim herself for the Dark or Light at midnight. If she chooses to go Dark, all the Light Casters in her family will die, but she would be able to have a previously-impossible physical relationship with Ethan. If she chooses to go Light, all the Dark Casters in her family will die, including Macon. A fight occurs, culminating in Sarafine escaping and Hunting nearly killing Macon. After Ethan gathers the other Duchannes for help, Ethan searches for Lena, but instead meets Sarafine, who kills him. At midnight, Lena uses her power over nature to block out the moonlight, preventing her from being claimed. She negotiates with Amma and then recites a spell from the Book of Moons to resurrect Ethan. The spell works, but at what cost? - Publisher's Description
The Shining
King, Stephen (1977)
The Overlook Hotel claimed the most beautfiul physical setting of any resort in the world; but Jack Torrance, the new winter caretaker, with his wife, Wendy and their five-year-old son Danny, saw much more than its splendor.
Jack saw the Overlook as an opportunity, a desperate way back from failure and despair; Wendy saw this lonely sanctuary as a frail chance to preserve their family; and Danny?
Danny, who was blessed or cursed with a shining, precognitive gift, saw visions hideously beyond the comprehension of a small boy. He sensed the evil coiled within the Overlook's one hundred and ten empty rooms; an evil that was waiting just for them. - Publisher's Description
Request Book Request Film Watch Online
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Thompson, Hunter S. (1972)
"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream" is a 1971 novel in the gonzo journalism style by Hunter S. Thompson. The book is a roman à clef, rooted in autobiographical incidents. The story follows its protagonist, Raoul Duke, and his attorney, Doctor Gonzo, as they descend on Las Vegas to chase the American Dream through a drug-induced haze, all the while ruminating on the failure of the 1960s countercultural movement.
The work is Thompson's most famous book, and is noted for its lurid descriptions of illicit drug use and its early retrospective on the culture of the 1960s. Thompson's highly subjective blend of fact and fiction, which it popularized, became known as gonzo journalism. Illustrated by Ralph Steadman, the novel first appeared as a two-part series in Rolling Stone magazine in 1971 before being published in book form in 1972. - Publisher's Description
Request the Book Request the Film
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Dick, Philip K. (1968)
By 2021, the World War has killed millions, driving entire species into extinction and sending mankind off-planet. Those who remain covet any living creature, and for people who can’t afford one, companies built incredibly realistic simulacra: horses, birds, cats, sheep. They’ve even built humans. Immigrants to Mars receive androids so sophisticated they are indistinguishable from true men or women.
Fearful of the havoc these artificial humans can wreak, the government bans them from Earth. Driven into hiding, unauthorized androids live among human beings, undetected. Rick Deckard, an officially sanctioned bounty hunter, is commissioned to find rogue androids and “retire” them. But when cornered, androids fight back—with lethal force. - Publisher's Description
Request Book Request Film Watch Online
Nineteen Eighty-Four: A Novel
Orwell, George (1949)
It is 1984, and the worlds' three major powers-Oceania, Eurasia and Eastasia-are constantly at war. In Oceania, where the Party is in power, the thought police unearth every act of dissent, and Big Brother is always watching. Winston Smith, a dutiful citizen of Oceania, works for the Ministry of Truth as a propaganda writer who rewrites history to suit the needs of the authoritarian government. But when Winston falls in love with fellow worker Julia, they begin to question the very system they work for, placing them in immense danger. Pursuing their forbidden love affair, Winston plans a rebellion against the Party in order to regain the freedom to shape his own future. But the ever-watchful Big Brother will not tolerate opposition, and for those who speak up against the system or dare to think what the Party does not want them to think, Room 101 awaits them . . .
"1984" is George Orwell's haunting prophesy of the future, which has held multiple generations of readers spellbound in its chilling and terrifying vision of life under a totalitarian regime. Powerful and unforgettable, this still-relevant novel explores the obliteration of truth, individuality and liberty in a world where the ruling power seeks to control everything, from information to thought and memory. - Publisher's Description
Request Book Request Film Watch Online
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Kesey, Ken (1962)
Boisterous, ribald, and ultimately shattering, Ken Kesey's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" has left an indelible mark on the literature of our time. Turning conventional notions of sanity and insanity on their heads, the novel tells the unforgettable story of a mental ward and its inhabitants, especially tyrannical Big Nurse Ratched and Randle Patrick McMurphy, the brawling, fun-loving new inmate who resolves to oppose her. We see the story through the eyes of Chief Bromden, the seemingly mute half-Indian patient who witnesses and understands McMurphy's heroic attempt to do battle with the powers that keep them all imprisoned.
Hailed upon its publication as a "glittering parable of good and evil" (The New York Times Book Review) and a "roar of protest against middlebrow society's Rules and the invisible Rulers who enforce them" (Time), Kesey's powerful book went on to sell millions of copies and remains as bracing and insightful today as when it was first released. - Publisher's Description
Life of Pi: A Novel
Martel, Yann (2011)
After the sinking of a cargo ship, a solitary lifeboat remains bobbing on the wild blue Pacific. The only survivors from the wreck are a sixteen-year-old boy named Pi, a hyena, a wounded zebra, an orangutan—and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger.
Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi Patel, whose fear, knowledge, and cunning allow him to coexist with the tiger, Richard Parker, for 227 days while lost at sea. When they finally reach the coast of Mexico, Richard Parker flees to the jungle, never to be seen again.
The Japanese authorities who interrogate Pi refuse to believe his story and press him to tell them "the truth." After hours of coercion, Pi tells a second story, a story much less fantastical, much more conventional—but is it more true?
"Life of Pi" is at once a realistic, rousing adventure and a meta-tale of survival that explores the redemptive power of storytelling and the transformative nature of fiction. It's a story, as one character puts it, to make you believe in God. - Publisher's Description
The Hobbit
Tolkein, J.R.R. (1937)
"The Hobbit," or "There and Back Again," is a children's fantasy novel by J.R.R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim. The book remains popular and is recognized as a classic in children's literature.
Set within Tolkien's Middle-earth, it follows the quest of home-loving Bilbo Baggins, the titular hobbit, to win a share of the treasure guarded by a dragon named Smaug. Bilbo's journey takes him from his light-hearted, rural surroundings into more sinister territory.
The story is told in the form of an episodic quest, and most chapters introduce a specific creature or type of creature of Tolkien's geography. Bilbo gains a new level of maturity, competence, and wisdom by accepting the disreputable, romantic, fey, and adventurous sides of his nature and applying his wits and common sense. The story reaches its climax in the Battle of Five Armies, where many of the characters and creatures from earlier chapters re-emerge to engage in conflict. - Publisher's Description
Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft (1818)
Few creatures of horror have seized readers' imaginations and held them for so long as the anguished monster of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein." The story of Victor Frankenstein's terrible creation and the havoc it caused has enthralled generations of readers and inspired countless writers of horror and suspense. Considering the gothic novel's enduring success, it is remarkable that it began merely as a whim of Lord Byron's.
"We will each write a story," Byron announced to his next-door neighbors, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin and her lover, the romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.
The illustrious poets failed to complete their ghost stories, but Mary Shelley rose supremely to the challenge. With "Frankenstein," she succeeded admirably in the task she set for herself: to create a story that, in her own words, "would speak to the mysterious fears of our nature and awaken thrilling horror — one to make the reader dread to look round, to curdle the blood, and quicken the beatings of the heart." - Publisher's Description
Bridgerton (Series)
Quinn, Julia (2000-2016)
"The film adaptations use the book series and their structure as Regency Romances (nodding over our raised tea cups to Georgette Heyer) to also explore an alternate history where racial integration coincides with the Georgian era (therefore one generation established by the Regency). The series, and the adaptations, are spicy, so choose your viewing partners with that in mind." - Anne Kramer, Executive Assistant
Set between 1813 and 1827, each novel features one of the eight children of the late Viscount Bridgerton and his widow Violet: Anthony, who is the current Viscount Bridgerton, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory, and Hyacinth. The Bridgerton family are part of British nobility and are a well respected, immensely loving, and tight-knit clan favored among high society. - Publisher's Description
The Wheel of Time (Series)
Jordan, Robert; Sanderson, Brandon (1990-2013)
"Season one, while simplifying the politics within this fantasy world, uses the film medium to give Robert Jordan's rather flat and dogmatic female characters more depth, and gives some complexity to the matriarchy and background to why it has a misandrist undercurrent." - Anne Kramer, Executive Assistant
The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.
When a vicious band of half-men, half beasts invade the Two Rivers seeking their master’s enemy, Moiraine persuades Rand al’Thor and his friends to leave their home and enter a larger unimaginable world filled with dangers waiting in the shadows and in the light. - Publisher's Description
