Books That Could or Should Be Movies or Shows--YA book version

 I loved this category so much, I did one for adult titles and one for YA titles.  C'mon Hollywood, make some of these!

Here is the link to the podcast in case you're interested:Alchemy of Genres

Let's get this show on the road (and apologies for this being so long, I am definitely addicted to reading, especially when the authors write such amazing stories.

Twelve & a half year old Wyatt is taken in by Uncle Spade when his house burns downs.  It's been 6 years of traveling, fighting in underground fights to win money and Wyatt is starting to think about what his life options are and why he is on this path.  His uncle likes things the way they are.

This is a touching story of a young man who has not had a good life but is making the best of it and is looking for a way to make his own path as he approaches adulthood.  Definitely would make for an awesome move.

This story by John Barnes has always been a favorite of mine, and not very many people pick it up (because cover isn't very exciting).  It's a historical fiction novel, set in 1973.  Karl is a long-standing member of the "Madmen Underground"; which is what the group of students selected to attend this mandatory therapy group in school call themselves.  This being his senior year of high school, Karl decides he wants to step away from the group and "be normal"; but normal is hard when you and all your friends are well known as "weirdos" or "problems"....and Karl is still struggling with working 2 jobs, while attending school and hiding money from his drug addicted mom (his dad died awhile ago).....and this isn't a normal scenario for most high school students. 

The interactions of the students and the group itself sucked me right into this story of misfits and teens struggling to survive high school.  I don't know why no one has picked this up for a movie, but c'mon....it's amazing! (oh and yeah there is a smidge of romance but it's not the focus of the story).

The Uglies should totally be a series or a series of movies (works either way).  The basic premise is that in this society everyone is "ugly" but on their 16th birthday they get to have an operation that makes them beautiful, and also enables them to live with the pretty people in a high tech world on the other side (Uglies live in harrowing circumstances, struggling with not enough resources, Pretties have everything they could ever want).  Tally can't wait but her BFF Shay isn't sure, so she runs away.  At this point Tally learns that some parts of the "pretty" world are truly ugly....she is given a choice by authorities to either find her friend and turn her in; or stay ugly forever......

This is a cool series but also a great way to look at the societal structures enforced upon us and what happens when you look that them with new eyes or just choose to go against the grain.

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison and Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world.  They meet at the pool, and seem to have nothing in common but find themselves building a friendship neither of them expect; and this changes both of them forever.  

This is a sweet story and a beautiful romantic story that absolutely should be a movie.  

Felton Reinstein is one of the most amazingly well written characters.  This series of books should absolutely be a series, though I worry they would ruin it all.  The basic story is that Felton has been bullied throughout his years in school, so he's gotten good at running.  Then right before his Junior year of high school he has a growth spurt and his speed and agility catch the eye of the football coach, who pressures him to join the team.  Felton does but finds himself in the uncomfortable position of now palling around with his former tormenters who seem to think he won't remember the years of bullying; and some of his teammates are nice (well, the ones who weren't bullies); but his friends are unsure if he will still want to be friends now that he's a jock....so Felton is confused and trying to figure it all out, while remaining a funny and lovely young man.  Herbach has written a series that needs to be seen by more people with characters so well written that they feel like people I know.  

Jazz is the son of an infamous serial killer who raised him to be just like dad.  Jazz refuses to follow in those footsteps but the knowledge he has and his dad's voice follow him and worry him that he will indeed snap and turn evil.  Then someone starts killing just like his dad and of course everyone suspects him, but since he didn't do it; Jazz feels incentivized to find the real culprit.

This trilogy will keep you on your feet while also gasping for air as you worry what will happen.  This would be an amazing movie or series, indeed there are some kind of like this (Prodigal son for example); so it may never happen; but I still think it would be awesome.

This picture is kind of a placeholder for the entirety of the Tortall Universe; as I think you could make a great series on the characters, and since the stories are intertwined, if the series did well; you'd meet all the characters and see all the stories.  There's the Lioness series where Alanna pretends to be a man so she can be a knight.  There's the Immortals series where Daine learns about her heritage and her wild magic of speaking with animals.  There's the Protector of the Small series where Keladry is the first official girl to enter knight's training and all she goes through.  There's the Circle of Magic & Circle Opens series where we follow 4 friends through magic school and using their magic and their friendships to forge something completely new.  

I don't know why more aren't reading these books, maybe they have gone out of fashion, but I still love it; and think it would be a very cool series to watch.

For those who love a hot & fun romance, Elkeles always delivers.  This is one of my favs, with a play on bad boy/good girl tropes where she actually delves beneath the obvious to see the layers.  Brittany isn't perfect, nor is her life even if she does come from "the right side of town" and have a wealthy family.  Alex isn't a bad person even if he comes from "a bad family" and isn't wealthy (or white).  They are forced to be lab partners and the rest is ....sigh....so sweet.

This would be a fun movie as it is a fun and light book. And who doesn't love a sweet and fun romantic story?

Dimple is 17 and struggling to find balance between life as an American and a good Indian daughter.  She is pushed to meet a "suitable" boy that her parents approve of, so that they can date through college and marry and produce perfect children.  Dimple agrees but is determined to hate him, until she finds that he is much more than his parents think he is and perhaps may be suitably unsuitable.....but does falling for him mean she is caving?  Can she forge her own identity and stop worrying about maintaining a charade for her parents?   This is an award winning and very well written book that absolutely should be a movie.  It reflects a scenario many immigrants deal with but with humor and fun and a bit of romance.  Someone write this movie! (In the meantime, read the book!)

I Am the Weapon (formerly published as Boy Nobody), is the first book in the Unknown Assassin series.  Boy Nobody is how he refers to himself as his identity is always changing.  Nobody shows up in a new town under a new name, never stays long; but when he leaves there is a "tragic accident" leaving one of his new friends dead.  And then it's on the next one.  This assignment is different though, as he is assigned (aka the target) the Mayor of NYC, who reminds him of his own father and his daughter who is amazing and different.  As memories of his life start to surface, he is struggling to maintain the charade; because if he falters, they will know and will take him for reconditioning......and he starts to wonder why he is doing all this and if maybe there could be a way out?   This trilogy is packed with suspense and should absolutely be a movie or a series to watch.  I would binge this and talk about it for ages.

October 11, 1943, a British spy plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France.  Its pilot and passenger are best friends.  One of the girls has a chance at survival and the other can only struggle to survive day to day and hope to die well as she has been captured by the Gestapo.  This story is her "confession" that she is ordered to write before she is executed as a spy.  Verity details her meeting and befriending Maddy and how she ended up here.

This book was deeply affecting to read and was simultaneously exciting and terrifying.  This movie would definitely be awesome.

Winger is a sports book, a friendship book, a bullying book, an LGBT book and even a book for all the super intelligent but physically behind kids.  Ryan is a 14 year old Junior at his high school, which is actually a super exclusive boarding school that he is on a scholarship to attend (and he is very aware of how out of his league he is regarding wealth).  He is rooming in the dorm for troublemakers, with the biggest bully on the rugby team as his roommate.  He is also madly in love with his friend Annie, who is clueless because 14 ---> 17 is a bigger gap than it seems.  Winger follows Ryan for the school year and the reader sees all that happened to land him where he is and to see what happens from here.  This book would be a fabulous movie, and even has a sequel (next book in line is Stand Off).

A side note, a fun movie (maybe as an animated movie?) would also be Grasshopper Jungle also by Andrew Smith.  It feels like an awesomely bad monster movie (in the best sense ever); and if you haven't read it, you should....and I think it would be a really fun animated movie. I mean, c'mon, people turning into giant preying mantis creatures, eating people, and everyone else trying to save what's left of the world?  Yeah, I want to see it too.

The Iron Fey series is a bit of a love story mixed with the world of dangerous fairies, with a half human girl (who doesn't know she's only half human) and several wicked princes.  Journey of discovery with magic and romance?  Yup.  Best selling movie or amazing Netflix series, either way, I'm watching.

Ok, guilty admission; this is one I am pretty sure they will never make into a movie, but I really wish they would.  Johnny is into punk music and "dude stuff" but something happens when he hears Debbie Harry sing in French, he not only wants to sing along or pretend to be at a concert with her; he wants to BE her.  He has never thought of wearing girls clothes and makeup before and isn't sure what to think about it, so he talks to his girlfriend and she thinks it is awesome.  She helps him pick out clothes, learn to apply makeup and find his way to getting comfortable enough to even thinking about performing in front of people dressed like this....and through it all, she supports him and tells him it's all ok.  The fact that this book is hidden doesn't change it's awesome message, that you can be who you are and find someone to accept and love you.  The fact that this whole thing is happening to a high school teen makes it even more amazing as I know it would be a difficult thing for an adult to deal with.  Meagan Brothers has this beautiful gem of a book that I want everyone to read, and wish they would make a movie of it just because acceptance and love should always be seen.  

The Curse Workers series would be amazing to see, and it even is set here in NJ!  Cassel comes from a family of con artists and grifters (because magic is illegal and thus curse workers work underground and illegally).  Strange dreams make him start to question everything about his life, especially what happened the night his best friend died and his memory says he killed her.  

Keys to the Kingdom is a series with a built in ending....7 days, 7 keys, 7 virtues and 7 sins.  One mysterious house is the doorway to a very mysterious world, where one boy is about to venture and unlock a number of fantastical secrets.

The Familiar and the Mage series starts with Human Familiar.  Bannen was looking for adventure that day he ran away from home.  What he wasn't expecting was to be yanked into a portal and transported halfway around the world.  He definitely wasn't expecting to be magically bound as a familiar to a mage in training.  Rena's magic is strange and different, so everyone tells her that she obviously did something wrong when summoning her familiar....That she needs to break the bond and try again, but Bannen is worried.  Rena's magic is amazing and strong but her body is so weak.  She needs protections and help....and maybe a human familiar to watch out and protect her.

This series was marketed to adults, but would work perfectly for teens, unfortunately it can only be found on Amazon, but if you have Kindle Unlimited, you can read it there. I think it would be a really different and fun series to watch on Amazon or Hulu.

TJ Jones hates the blatant preferential treatment jocks receive at his high school and the reverence paid to the varsity lettermen.  When he sees a member of the wrestling team threatening an underclassman, TJ decides he's had enough.  He reruits some fo the biggest misfits at Cutter High to form a swim team.  They may not have very much talent, but the All-Night Mermen prove to be way more than TJ anticipated.  As the unlikely athletes move closer to their goal, these new friends might learn that the journey is worth more than the reward.  

This topical book would absolutely be a great movie, dealing with bullying, racism, and a smart teen who isn't afraid to also be caring.....

Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the worst thing she'd ever been through.  That was before her planet was invaded.  Now, with enemy fire raining down on them, Kady & Ezra are forced to fight their way onto one of the evacuating crafts, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.  A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their biggest threat and nobody in charge will say what's really going on.  As Kady plunges into a web of data hacking to get to the truth, it's clear ony one person can help her bring it all to light....Ezra.  This story is told through hacked "documents", emails, schematics, military files, medical reports, and more; so it's practically already a script....just make this movie already!

It's prom night and Perry just wants to stick to his own plan and finally play a much anticipated gig with hi band in the big apple.  But when his mother makes him take Gobija Zaksauskas, their quiet, geeky Lithuanian exchange student tot he prom, he never expects that his ordinary high school life will be turned on its head.  Perry finds that Gobi is on a mission, and Perry has no other choice but to go along for a reckless ride through Manhattan's concrete grid with a trained assassin in Dad's red jag.  Doesn't this ALREADY sound like an amazing movie?  I know, right?  So why isn't it?   Definitely check out the book and the sequel Perry's Killer Playlist in the meanwhile.

Keesha has found a safe place to live and other kids gravitate to her house when they just can't make it on their own  The story is told through poems, but seems like it would be an amazing movie, telling the story of 7 teens and how they overcome life's difficulties and find their place in the world.

15 year old Jeff wakes up on New Year's Day to find himself in the hospital.  Specifically, in the psychiatric ward as an attempted suicide.  Despite the bandages on his wrists he is positive that this is all a mistake.  He is perfectly fine, perfectly normal and definitely not like all the other kids in the hospital with him.  Over the next 45 days, Jeff will come to terms with why he's here, what led him here and what to do when he leaves.  This story sounds like a total downer/sob fest; but is surprisingly funny and sympathetic.  This isn't a "watch out or this will happen to you" story but a story of one boy and what happened to him.   This would be a good movie, as long as they kept the funny moments in, if they made it all schmaltzy and ridiculous, it would be terrible.

The Lotus War series is a dystopian steampunk journey through a world very like Japan; an amazing series from an amazing story.  Female lead, very kickass, lots of action and my fav, steampunk.   Make this movie already!

The Ranger's Apprentice series has so many books, and is several books through it's continuing sequel.  I have NO idea why it isn't a series already.  Basic story:  Rangers are feared by everyone, with their dark cloaks and shadowy ways; and now, like it or not, Will has been chosen as a Ranger's Apprentice.  What he doesn't realize it that the Rangers are the protectors of the kingdom.  Highly trained in the skills of battle and surveillance (i.e. spies!), they fight the battles before the battles begin.  And as Will is about to learn, there is a large battle brewing.   The original series follows Will from apprentice to master and all the adventures between.....seriously, lots of action and spying....screams, make me into something to binge watch on Netflix.

In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle.  She comes not to kill the king but to win her freedom.  If she defeats 23 killers, thieves and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king's champion.  Her name is Celaena Sardohien.  The Crown Prince will provoke her, and the Captain of the Guard will protect her, but something evil dwells in the castle of glass and it's there to kill everyone. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.  

Yeah.  doesn't that sound like something amazing to watch on the couch with a soda and a bag of popcorn?

Her name is Binti, and she is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University. the finest institution of learning in the galaxy.  But to accept the offer will mean giving up her place in her family, and to travel between the stars among strangers who do not share her ways or respect her customs.  Knowledge comes at a cost, one that Binti is willing to pay, but her journey will not be easy.  The world she seeks to enter has long warred with the Meduse, an alien race that has become the stuff of nightmares.  Oomza University has wronged the Meduse and Binti's stellar travel will bring her within their deadly reach.  If Binti hopes to survive the legacy of a war not of her making, she will need both the gifts of her people and the wisdom garnered along the way.  This is a truly amazing science fiction adventure, and I can totally picture the movie with ships and crazy aliens.....sigh....

This series is an interesting mashup of fairy tale and SF concepts.  Each book explores a different fairy tale but joins together in an overarching theme/adventure.  This would be so cool to watch!.

Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride; or rather, his parents are looking for one on his behalf.  Sebastian is busy hiding his secret life from everyone.  At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the famous Lady Crystallia, the hottest fashion icon in the world capitol of fashion.  Sebastian's secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker, Frances.  She is one of only two people who know Sebastian's secret, but Frances dreams of greatness as a designer and being someone's secret weapon means being secret.  How long can Frances defere her dreams to protect a friend? How long can Sebastian's secret stay hidden?  This sweet story screams to be made into an animated film.....just, please.   

Tsukimi has a strange fascination with jellyfish.  She resides in Amamizukan, a safe haven for girl geeks who hold a variety of obsessions.  A chance meeting at a pet shop has Tsukimi crossing paths with something all the girls try to avoid.....a beautiful girl.  But this girl is different, and this meeting begins a time of change for all of them, and maybe Tsukimi will also find a man to love her as much as she loves jellyfish.

If there is an anime of this out there, please tell me....because I want to watch it.

The summer after junior year of high school looks bleak for Alton Richards.  His girlfriend has dumped him, he has no money and no job, and his parents insist that he drive his great-uncle Lester (who is old, blind, very ill & very rich) to his bridge club four times a week and be a cardturner.  But Alton's parents aren't the only ones trying to worm their way into Lester Trapp's good graces.  Alton soon finds himself intrigued by his uncle, by the game of bridge and especially by the pretty and shy Toni Castaneda; as he struggles to figure out what it all means and ultimately what he wants out of life.

Yup, fun movie with a kid getting to know an elderly relation; forming a strong bond while surrounded by family who don't really care about more than money?  Says hit movie to me.....

The Misfits follows a group of outcasts who have banded together to face down the perils of pre-adolescence.  Now that they are all in 7th grade, they are determined to change their reputations, answer and stand up to their bullies and maybe remind people that labels are for food and not for people.  

I love this series, would watch it as a movie or a series.....all the breakout books highlighting each of the Misfits are also very good.

King explored the desperate reality of a former child "star" of a reality show struggling to break free from his anger and the reputation given to him from his reality show 12 years ago when he was 5.

This book deals frankly with perception vs reality on "reality tv"; as well as the ongoing aftermath of being able to access these shows forever. 

This story is a tearjerker, not gonna lie; but so good; and should be an equally good movie.

Alex Craft knows how to kill someone, and she doesn't feel bad about it.  Three years ago, when her older sister Anna was murdered and the killer walked free, Alex uncaged the language she knows best--the language of violence.  While her own crime goes unpunished, Aex knows she can't be trusted among other people; not with Jack, the star athlete who wants to know her but still feels guilty over the role he played in the night Anna's body was discovered; and not for Peekay, the preacher's kid with a defiant streak who befiends Alex while they volunteer at an animal shelter.  No one is safe.  As their senior year unfolds, Alex's darker nature beaks out; setting these three teens on a collision course.  Again....doesn't this already sound like a movie?

The truth:  Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on Sept 28, 1330.

The legend:  Nicholas Flamel discovered the secret of eternal life

Records show that Flamel dies in 1418, but he lives....because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries.  The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects; the book of Abraham the Mage.  It's the most powerful book that has ever existed.  In the wrong hands it will destroy the world, and those hands REALLY want to find it.

Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late.  And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones who can save the world; if only someone can convince them it's all real.

This is an amazing series full of magic and betrayal, history and magic.  I would adore seeing this on a screen, big or small

Thanks for reading or listening.....the adult titles list will be coming soon!

Saleena