Five Young Adult Novels That Deserve Movie Adaptations

                Since Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone came out in 2001, big screen adaptations of Young Adult novels have been some of the box offices biggest hits. With the recent premiere of The Fault in Our Stars and If I Stay and The Giver on the way, this summer seems to be the season of the adaptation. I've compiled a list of the books I would most like to see in the theaters.*

1. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

                America loves its World War II movies, but I favor a British studio for this film. To pull this off, one would need a director familiar with the twists and turns of spy thrillers and two badass young actresses to lead the cast. Some people have suggested Kira Knightly and Renée Zellweger, but I think they are too old for Maddie and Verity (who are in their early twenties). Whatever actresses are chosen, they will have to prove chemistry does not exists only for love interests.

2. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

                A few months ago, Rainbow Rowell proudly announced on twitter that the movie rights to her Pritz Award Honoree had been sold to DreamWorks. If done right, the Eleanor and Park movie could be a quirky, romantic drama of TFIOS proportions. Popular fancasts are hard to find since Hollywood has a sadly unsurprising lack of Asian-American actors and heavy-set actresses. Rowell says that her biggest fear is Eleanor played by a skinny girl and Park played by Keanu Reaves. Same here, Rowell.

3. Going Bovine by Libba Bray

                This one could go either completely amazing or very, very wrong. Whoever directs Bray's award winning novel needs to embrace the stories surrealism and not fear ridiculousness. Logan Lerman, who is no stranger to Young Adult adaption, could play Cameron and Adèle Exarchopoulos could play Dulcie. Throw a CGI gnome in there and you got a movie.

4. Every Day by David Levithan

                I have to admit, I just want to see if it could pull this off. Since A is constantly switching bodies, multiple actors and actresses would need to be hired to play the same main character. With a talented young cast, this movie would be a fresh take on teenage romantic dramas. That being said, it's unlikely that a studio would take on the challenge. But a reader can dream.

5. Great by Sara Benincasa

                The most recent adaptation of The Great Gatsby might have made booklovers everywhere cringe, but She's the Man and Clueless prove that people love teenage movies based on classic novels. I pick Wes Anderson to recreate Jacinta's modern candy-colored world and Elle Fanning to play Naomi Rye. Jacinta is tough, but the If I Stay trailer does prove that Chloë Grace Moretz could pull off the white bob.

*I excluded movies that are already in production, but not books that the movie rights have already been sold, since studios can sit on movie rights for years.

Best Movie Adaptation Soundtracks

                *Digs self out of snow bank* Helloooo Internet! It's my spring break and it's 37 degrees out, because Minnesota that's why. So I'm staying inside and watching movies and getting some writing done, until I leave for NYC on Monday.

                I've had a crazy week full of all the deadlines and responsibilities one's senior year is not supposed to have. While caring for my life as a suburban hack, I've been listening to a lot of music, specifically, the Catching Fire Movie Soundtrack. It has brought together all my favorite artists to make badass post-apocalyptic music. My favorites are "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Lorde and "Silhouettes" by Of Monsters and Men. This got me thinking about all the great soundtracks of movie adaptation of books. Here are my top picks:

1. The First Hunger Games Movie

                While the Catching Fire soundtrack focused mostly on the sinister capital and the cruelty of the arena, the first movie's soundtrack explored Katniss's rural roots of District 12, making for an awesome folk rock album, the best of which are the haunting "Safe and Sound" by Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars and "Run Daddy Run" by Miranda Lambert ft. The Pistol Annies.

2. The Twilight Saga: New Moon

                The Twilight movies got a lot of things wrong, but the soundtracks are not one of them. New Moon's soundtrack is filled with dreamy, alternative rock love songs that can almost make me forgive Lautner's acting (almost). My favorites are "Meet Me by the Equinox" by Death Cab for Cutie and "Satellite Heart" by Anya Marina.

 

3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

                No original songs on this one, but like the book, the movie is centered around beloved late 80s and early 90s tracks. The soundtrack includes memorable pieces such as "Come on Eileen" by Dexys Midnight Runners, "Heroes" by David Bowie, and, who can forget, "Asleep" by the Smiths.

4. Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland

                When remaking a childhood classic starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, it's important to know one's audience. So the producers chose the punk pop artists they knew their slightly alternative teenage audience (myself included) would love. I've had "Painting Flowers" by All Time Low and "Always Running Out of Time" by Motion City Soundtrack on my iPod for years.

                Why are movie-adaptation soundtracks so awesome? Language and music are intertwined. Readers find songs that fit the books that they are reading. Many writers write listening to music that fits their scenes. Music lets us relive and enhance the feelings we had while reading or writing our favorite stories. Plus, listening to one song is also a lot quicker than rewatching an entire movie or rereading an entire book.