Books. Books. Books!!!
What’s not to love? They pull you deep into a world that usually is pretty far from your real life; they essentially give you a much-needed escape. They take you on journeys so powerful when you’re pulled away from them it can feel like your soul was ripped apart. From the feel of the spine in the palm of your hands to the smell that wafts into your nose with each flip of a page, books have a way of being so magical you never want to leave them.
The only thing that comes close to the power a book can hold are exceptionally good films. However, more often than not when an adaptation of a book is made, we readers are largely disappointed. I can count on one hand the times a film adaptation has done so well, I felt it was better than the book. What’s more common is a film adaptation being just as good or as already mentioned, a complete letdown.
That said, there are a couple of books that are getting adaptations. Some of them are so good it’d be a shame if you had to watch them before reading them! Here are 7 books you should definitely read before the film adaptation come out.
It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
Sometimes it is the one who loves you who hurts you the most.
Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up — she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.
Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. And the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head. But Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place.
As questions about her new relationship overwhelms her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan — her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.
My Thoughts
Colleen Hoover is an exceptionally talented writer whom I greatly admire. Her ability to craft intricate and captivating narratives goes far beyond the realm of traditional romance novels. When I delved into this book, I initially anticipated a delightful, lighthearted romantic comedy. However, within a few chapters, I was taken aback by an unexpected twist that added depth and complexity to the story. The book unfolded with a multitude of engaging elements, and I found myself thoroughly enamoured with every passing moment. I am scared that the movie might erase the magic. So I say read it before the movie possibly ruins it for you.
Air Date: TBD
Red, White And Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations. The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince.
As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?
My Thoughts
I’ve been seeing this book EVERYWHERE but I gravitate towards sapphic books more than Achillean ones. However, my sister is obsessed with the ‘genre’ so I got her the book for her birthday. Almost immediately after, we hear about the upcoming movie. It looks so good, my ass is prepping to dive into the book before I watch it!
Air Date: 11 August 2023
The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes by Suzanne Collins
It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capital, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmanoeuvre his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.
The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined — every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favour or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute… and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.
My Thoughts
Before delving into the entire Hunger Games series, I made the wise choice of watching the first movie. It turned out to be the perfect decision. Transitioning from the film to the books created an incredibly enchanting experience, mainly because the series consisted of multiple books. Since I only had a glimpse into the movie world, it didn’t spoil or hinder my enjoyment of the book world in any way.
Now, with the prequel to the beloved Hunger Games franchise on the horizon, I plan to read the book before watching the movie. Based on my previous encounter with the Hunger Games, I highly recommend others to do the same.
Air Date: 17 November 2023
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. Separated as girls, sisters Celie and Nettie sustain their loyalty to and hope in each other across time, distance and silence. Through a series of letters spanning twenty years, first from Celie to God, then the sisters to each other despite the unknown, the novel draws readers into its rich and memorable portrayals of Celie, Nettie, Shug Avery and Sofia and their experiences. The Color Purple broke the silence around domestic and sexual abuse, narrating the lives of women through their pain and struggle, companionship and growth, resilience and bravery. Deeply compassionate and beautifully imagined, Alice Walker’s epic carries readers on a spirit-affirming journey towards redemption and love.
My Thoughts
While studying literature, specifically Afro-American literature in university, I read this beautiful masterpiece. I was so in love with it. I’m not sure how(because I never miss these things) but somehow I didn’t know there was an older movie. This is the remake. I CANNOT wait to see it. I have high hopes that this movie will meet all my expectations. Two actresses alone make me feel this way, Halle Bailey and Taraji P. Henson. They have never disappointed with any role they’ve ever played. I’m seating at the edge of my seat waiting for this movie. I will also be watching the original movie before seeing this one!
Air Date: 25 December 2023
Children Of Blood And Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.
Now we rise.
Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.
But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.
Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.
Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.
My Thoughts
As a child, I only came across African books with intriguing plots but what I perceived as slow and boring writing. So, when I first heard about this book, I had my doubts. I was excited because it’s soaked in fantasy but I had my reservations. I got the book last year but I just couldn’t bring myself to read it. Since then I’ve read so many GOOD African novels that you can honestly say I’m obsessed! Life and a bunch of other things have kept me from reading this book but with the recent movie announcement, I feel an urgency like never before. I absolutely have to read the book before the movie is released!
Air Date: TBD
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Avery Grambs has a plan for a better future: survive high school, win a scholarship, and get out. But her fortunes change in an instant when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves Avery virtually his entire fortune. The catch? Avery has no idea why — or even who Tobias Hawthorne is.
To receive her inheritance, Avery must move into sprawling, secret passage-filled Hawthorne House, where every room bears the old man’s touch — and his love of puzzles, riddles, and codes. Unfortunately for Avery, Hawthorne House is also occupied by the family that Tobias Hawthorne just dispossessed. This includes the four Hawthorne grandsons: dangerous, magnetic, brilliant boys who grew up with every expectation that one day, they would inherit billions. Heir apparent Grayson Hawthorne is convinced that Avery must be a con woman, and he’s determined to take her down. His brother, Jameson, views her as their grandfather’s last hurrah: a twisted riddle, a puzzle to be solved. Caught in a world of wealth and privilege, with danger around every turn, Avery will have to play the game herself just to survive.
My Thoughts
This book is so good, I can’t wait to see the movie. It is a thrilling and captivating mystery novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat. It’s filled with twists, turns, and suspense that will leave you guessing until the very end. It’s so good, I’m begging ya’ll to read it before the movie possibly ruins it for you.
Air Date: TBD
The Seven Husbands Of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.
My Thoughts
I didn’t expect this book to hit the way it did- but nonetheless, it did. I fell in love with the history, film history and largely what I would call art. I genuinely have nothing bad to say about this book. I feel Reid did the queer, BIPOC and old Hollywood community immense justice. She weaved Evelyn’s(one of the book’s protagonists) entire life story in such a seamless way, I was never bored. It’s a spectacular bildungsroman that kept me at the edge of my seat throughout the entire read. I am so glad I got to enjoy this book for what it was before hearing about the movie!
Air Date: TBD
The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett
The Vignes’s twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it’s not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it’s everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters’ storylines intersect?
Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing. Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person’s decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.
My Thoughts
Firstly, this isn’t being adapted into a movie but a series. However, the synopsis drew me in so much, it made my list. Ya’ll if you read what you just read above, wouldn’t you want to read and watch it? Just make sure to read it first, like I will be doing!
Air Date: TBD
P.S. All synopsis were gotten from GoodReads