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Novel ideas: Ten of the best book-based films and series

Lifestyle

Novel ideas: Ten of the best book-based films and series

Adapted from blockbuster material by everyone from Stephen King and Liane Moriarty to AJ Finn

Michele Magwood
Ferdia Shaw in 'Artemis Fowl'.
FOWL PLAY Ferdia Shaw in 'Artemis Fowl'.
Image: IMDb

NORMAL PEOPLE by Sally Rooney

The wildly zeitgeisty novel about two teenagers growing up in Ireland has been shot as a 12-part TV adaptation. It will be shown on the BBC and Hulu.  Fans are counting the days till its May release.

NINE PERFECT STRANGERS by Liane Moriarty

By the author of Big Little Lies, this is an enthralling story of a group of city dwellers thrown together at a wellness retreat. With Nicole Kidman starring, and exec-producing for Amazon Prime, expectations are high.

THIS IS GOING TO HURT: SECRET DIARIES OF A JUNIOR DOCTOR by Adam Kay

Kay’s word-of-mouth bestseller about his years on the wards of NHS hospitals is sure to be hilarious but painful too. The former gynaecologist, now a standup-comic, has adapted it himself for an eight-part series on Amazon Prime.

THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW by AJ Finn

The trailer for this film alone is a blow to the brain. Amy Adams plays an agoraphobic woman trapped in her New York apartment. In her haze of pills and wine, nothing and no one is what they seem.

THE STAND by Stephen King

A-listers Alexander Skarsgård and Whoopi Goldberg star in this epic drama. A man escapes from a bio-weapon facility carrying a virus that wipes out most of the world’s population. Being Stephen King, it’s scary as hell.

LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE by Celeste Ng

Who can forget the opening scene of this novel where a woman is watching her magnificent house burn to the ground? That woman is played by Reese Witherspoon, who is feuding with a neighbour played by Kerry Washington. The formidable pair also produced the series for Hulu.

THE LUMINARIES by Eleanor Catton

The heavyweight book has been distilled into a six-episode series for the BBC. Set in New Zealand’s mid-19th century gold rush, it follows a British woman’s search for a new life in the remote colony.

ARTEMIS FOWL by Eoin Colfer

The 12-year-old genius and criminal mastermind gets the Disney treatment under the able baton of Kenneth Branagh. Fowl captures a vicious sprite and attempts to harness her magical powers in a bid to rescue his family. Worth seeing for Judi Dench’s turn as a Churchillian commander of the fairy police force.

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