Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Would Like to See Turned into Movies

It's Top Ten Tuesday, the day when the Broke and Bookish blog challenges us to come up with the top ten books in a certain category, like "top ten books I'm excited to read this winter." But today's challenge is actually a freebie, so everyone gets to pick their own category.

For mine, I have decided to pick the top ten books I'd like to see turned into movies, chosen mostly because I think they would have amazing costumes, sets, or settings, or because I want to see which actors plays which character.

I've always been interested in the ways books are adapted for movies. I like to see what they take out or change in the film version, and what stays the same. I'm also always curious to see how the filmmakers ideas of what things look like differ from my own. I just think the whole process is really cool - and how it turns something imaginary into something that is well, still imaginary, but more concrete. True, some books are better left as books - either they're too slow or too centered on narration. But some, I think, would be really well-suited to the big screen. So here we have go...the ten books I'd like to see turned into movies. (I think the most challenging part of this will be finding books that haven't already been turned into movies)

1) Looking for Alaska by John Green - I know that some company, and some point, had the movie rights to this book, and I also read somewhere that Josh Schwartz (aka the genius behind Gossip Girl AND the OC) signed on as its producer (or maybe director?). If that happened, it would be amazing, because it would be a combination of two of my favorite things: John Green and trashy teen TV dramas. But seriously, I think this book could make for a fun, exciting, interesting movie, especially if Schwartz were involved. I think he could do a lot with this elite private boarding school setting, as rich, somewhat troubled teenagers seem to be his area of expertise. I'm also curious to see who they would cast as who, particularly Alaska. I think the most difficult part of adapting this would be presenting Mitch's big philosophical realization at the end, because in the book he writes it all down in his final paper for his religion class, but that would be really boring to watch in a movie, and doing it in voice-over seems like a cop-out.

2) Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins  - If for no other reason, I think this would be a great movie because of the setting in Paris. It would be so beautiful! Also, the love interest is supposed to be this super hot, kind of short British guy. Sounds like the perfect part for...ahem...Ed Westwick. But seriously, with all the Paris stuff and the romance and drama, this would be a perfect movie.

3) Bloomability by Sharon Creech - The book takes place, if you don't know, at an American boarding school in Switzerland, which is another great, visually-appealing setting. Along with the beautiful backdrop, the story is really interesting, and I especially love the characters, particularly the free-spirited Guthrie. Again, I would love to see who they would cast for each character. And I think with the setting and the story and the characters, it would be a great movie.

4)  Meg Cabot's books - I think all of her books could be turned into great, fun chick flicks. I'm surprised more of them haven't been adapted, given the success of the Princess Diaries. I would particularly like to see her whole Every Boy's Got One series adapted, since it takes place in Italy. The Heather Wells stories, about a crime solving former pop-star, would also be fun. And they would be sure to be filled with lots of "visually-appealling" male actors, since her stories always have some kind of love interest.

5) Going Bovine by Libba Bray - I think this book would be difficult to turn into a movie, because so much of it seems to be a hallucination, taking place in the mind of a dying boy. But, I would like to see if someone could pull it off, and how they would do it and interpret the book. I also think it could be really colorful and visually interesting, since so much of it is (maybe) a dream. Also, it's a great book and a really complex story, and I think it would make a fun, heartbreaking movie.

6) A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray - Going along with this Libba Bray theme, I think her novel, A Great and Terrible Beauty, could make for a great movie. (And since it's the first in a series, it could be made into several movies. Hello, franchise!). First of all, it's a period piece, set in Victorian England, so the costumes would be ah-mazing. Also, the story is fun and exciting, with magic and secret worlds, so that could be great on screen, too. But yeah, mostly I'm just excited about the costumes.

7) Don't Judge A Girl By Her Cover by Ally Carter - This novel, set in a boarding school for girl-spies, is also part of a series, so this could be yet another franchise! But even without that commercial appeal, I think it would be a great movie, like James Bond meets teen comedy. The books are full of cool gadgets and secret missions, but there's also a real, human side to it, because the girls deal with typical girl issues (friendship, boys, etc). Plus, I would love to see who they cast as the hot guys from their all-male brother spy school. Also, a lot of the books feature quick trips to exotic locations, like London, so that would be great on-screen.

8) The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao -I would be curious to see if this book could be translated into film, because I think one of its biggest strengths is its hilarious narrator, which would be hard to capture on-screen, especially since the narrator isn't really part of the action. However, I am hopeful that it could be done, and either way, I would love to see someone's attempt at translating this story to screen. It's such  a crazy, raucous story. I think it could be such a fun movie, especially since it has so many colorful characters. (I bet the costumes would be interesting, too). Also, the books got some interesting history in it, of the Domincan Republic, so it would be educational!

9) The Catcher in the Rye - I'm sure J.D. Salinger would hate to see his novel go to the movies, but I would love it. I mean, can you imagine? First off, I would love to see who they picked to play Holden. And I would love to see all that angst on screen. This is another story that relies heavily on the voice of the narrator, but I think the right actor could portray that on-screen, even without voiceover. Plus, it takes place in NYC, so that's always a good setting. And I just think it would be so, so funny to finally see it on screen.

10) The Great Gatsby - Okay, so technically this is already being made into a movie, but it hasn't happened yet, so this still counts. Plus, I am super excited about the movie. Anyway, so this is another one that I think would have beautiful costumes, especially since the characters are so wealthy. Oh, and the sets! Can you imagine what Gatsby's house would look like on-screen? And his parties? I would love to see all that decadence on screen. Plus, it's a great story. Oh, and in contrast to the decadence, I would like to see how they would create the valley of the ashes and the giant pair of eyes and all the other unsightly places in the novel.

PS. Have any of the books on my list already been made into movies? Let me know!