There are two big book adaptations coming to the #kidlit and #YA worlds in the next few months. Movie adaptations are a huge driver of print circulation in the library so its important to be aware of what’s coming out on the big screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
We are laying in additional paperback copies and scanning festival reviews for hints as to whether this latest batch of adaptations will be glorious or do a disservice to all who loved the story in its original, written form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First up, on September 30th comes Tim Burton’s version of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children<\/a>. <\/em>Ransom Rigg’s 2011 found-photography novel<\/a> launched a trilogy <\/a>and remains reliably popular among our tween and teen readers. I am curious to see if the movie connects with a general audience unfamiliar with the source material. The trailers <\/a>focus heavily on what happens once main character Jacob discovers the Peculiars, but that is a smaller part of the larger narrative in the original novel. Tim Burton’s visuals are crisp and the color palette is bright and cheerful on the island where the Peculiars make their home. Burton is not working with long-time collaborators Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter this time around, instead relying on Eva Green to beguile audiences as the no-nonsense Miss Peregrine. At the time of this post, the movie has not yet been reviewed<\/a>, but hopefully Burton will deliver a magical retelling of this original, creepy tale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reviews are in for A Monster Calls<\/a><\/em>, and they are almost uniformly glowing. An adaptation of Patrick Ness’ 2011 book<\/a> (itself adapted from an idea of the late Siobhan Dowd), the film stars Sigourney Weaver, Felicity Jones, and the vocal talents of Liam Neeson as the titular monster. The author himself wrote the screenplay, which is usually a good sign, and reviews seem to agree. After screenings at the Toronto Film Festival, critics called the film “a wonderfully imaginative tearjerker<\/a>,” “so good you won’t care that you’re crying<\/a>,” and “A sensitive and beautifully made lesson in the limits and power of storytelling<\/a>.” The trailer is a good mix o<\/a>f heartrending and frightening, and shows that the monster’s stories are animated in a similar manner to the illustrations in the book. Unfortunately, American audiences who are not invited to film festivals will have to wait until January 6, 2017 for the release of this much-anticipated tearjerker. Still, with trailers for the movie playing in theaters now, we’ve had an increase in holds requests for this title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n