Upcoming Films Based on Great Books

It seems like most great books nowadays find their way onto the big or small screen at some point. This always raises the question: What's better - the book or the movie? Carole Barrowman joins us to share some soon-to-be movies or TV series and how they'll stack up against their already great source material. For more information on Carole Barrowman, visit BarrowmanBooks.com. And see below for her reviews: "The Sun is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon (ages 12+) - Yara Shahidi (the Minnesota actor who plays Zoey in "BLACK-ISH") stars as Natasha in the adaptation of this hugely popular YA novel. Natasha falls in love with a young man, a Korean immigrant, just as her family is about to be deported to the Caribbean. The novel deals with issues of identity and family, all wrapped in a charming and authentic love story. "Where’d You Go, Bernadette?" by Maria Semple - Cate Blanchett will play the eccentric main character in last year’s sly best-seller about a quirky family living in the Seattle suburbs. When Bernadette suddenly goes missing before the family is about to take a trip, her daughter sets out to find her. I loved this book’s wry humor and pointed satire at our culture. Here’s hoping the film will not stray far from the source material. "Lovecraft Country" by Matt Ruff - Jordan Peele of "Us" and "Get Out" fame is directing this adaptation of one of my favorite novels of the last few years for a series on HBO (JJ Abrams is producing). The book is about a young black man, Atticus Turner, traveling south to north in 1940s America in search of his missing father. The book takes an astounding, brilliant turn mid-way on Atticus’s journey and the reader’s. This book is horror, fantasy, and history all in one. I’m nervous about the series because I loved this book so much. My fingers and eyes are crossed. "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer (6+) - For a few weeks one summer, my son wanted to be Artemis Fowl, a young genius criminal from a family of famous criminals who kidnaps a Fairy Queen to fund his search for his missing father. This caper novel is fast and furious and Artemis is super cool. Out this summer with Ferdia Shaw (his grandpa was Robert Shaw from "Jaws" fame), this will be a great film for families this summer. Plus, since there are eight books in the series after you see the film you can jump right into more of Artemis’s fantastic adventures.