To ask what book you'd like to see adapted for TV or film?

[Collidascope]

They keep remaking Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Little Women.

What book would you like to see adapted?
I'd love to see The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (and I know, there is one TV series from ages ago), Evelina by Frances Burney, who was said to have inspired Jane Austen. Oh, and The Power by Naomi Alderman.

Agree with so many here - definitely Georgette Heyer, Donna Leon and Josephine Tey - and "A Town Like Alice" film that actually makes it to Australia!

And please please let there be a remake of "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" that isn't crap.

[quote AndNoneForGretchenWieners]@Goosefoot Glenister is looking decidedly middle aged these days. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing in a man but maybe not what you are thinking of for the role.

You may be right. But he is still a fine specimen [/quote]
Far be it for me to disagree. One of the odd things about watching Life On Mars was always that although Sam was clearly the better catch on Paper, Gene was altogether more shagable.

Another vote for The Earthsea books, but agree they have a stillness and spirituality that would be hard to capture on the screen.

Also, The Dark Is Rising sequence, but done properly. The film [shudders] was beneath contempt, and I turned it off half way through.

The Charlie Parker series by John Connolly. I devour these books and they are perfect for adaptation.

The Jack Reacher books, but with an actor who actually physically resembles the character. I have no idea WTAF Tom Cruise was thinking?

Finally, the Jack Cafferey books by Mo Hayder. Deliciously dark, slightly twisted and absolutely gripping. Definitely would need to be Aiden Turner playing Jack, though

Adding my name to the clamour for a long-running Harry Potter tv series. An detailed animated version could be good too.

And as a PP said, the Narnia books for once deserve decent and faithful adaptation – the WHOLE series, in order, starting with The Magician's Nephew (my personal favourite). The 3(?) films that were made were so random and made no sense in the order they did them. The books really DESERVE a really good, long-running TV series - one book per series - in a similar quality to His Dark Materials or Game of Thrones.

The forgotten garden by Kate Morton and Twenties girl by Sophie Kinsella

BasiliskStare there is a film of The Sun Also Rises and it's good (although I haven't read the book!) Tyrone Power and Ava Gardner. I think that's when she got her fascination for bullfighters

@Hippee

Agree with so many here - definitely Georgette Heyer, Donna Leon and Josephine Tey - and "A Town Like Alice" film that actually makes it to Australia!

And please please let there be a remake of "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" that isn't crap.

They really drained all the warmth and humour and joy out of Guernsey Pie didn't they?

I saw the Guernsey Lit film before I read the book. Changed my analysis of one person entirely and agree the joy was sucked out of it!

Would also like to see some Josephine Teys brought to life, especially the Franchise Affair. Franchise was the first one I read and I'm rather fond of it.

Two more I've been thinking of: Wide Sargasso Sea as an antidote to yet another adaptation of Jane Eyre and then The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood. I adore it, it's my favourite of hers. It would be a lovely film or tv series.

With The Robber Bride though, a lot of it is internal monolgue which might prove hard to bring to life. The back stories of the characters are fine as they are, too. Hopefully no one would want to meddle with them. Finally, the Robber Bride herself- Xenia, is a mystery beyond what we know of her through the others (and that's probably all lies anyway) . I like her that way, it suits her. I can see an adaptor just itching to give her a back story and ruining her.

Kate Atkinson's novels have been mentioned a lot. She's easily one of my favourite writers but I must admit I don't think she translates particularly well to telly where you lose her very individual voice and the very relatable and funny thoughts of her characters.

Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. A version of the King Arthur legend written from the female characters' perspective

With The Robber Bride though, a lot of it is internal monolgue which might prove hard to bring to life.

So is War and Peace but there's plenty of adaptations of it. It is funny how some things are done again and again to the extent that it becomes more about the film makers relationship with the text than a faithful version of the book (impossible to do in a film often anyway, TV has more time to make a loyal version). Then other, equally classic novels are ignored.

Another vote for the Chronicles of St Mary's

I love the St Mary's books but I can't see them as a TV series. I don't know if the spirit of the books would come across as well as it does on the books.

I can, and oddly I think St Mary’s would work with relatively low budget filming- more old Dr Who than epic.

Like Dr Who, but with earth shattering sex scenes. I think there would be an audience got that

Re PP's: The Mists of Avalon was made into a film, but I don't think it was ever on general release. I watched it with some of my Pagan friends and they all seemed to think lt was great, but I much preferred the book.
A Town Like Alice was one of my favourite films since childhood, but of course it always made me cry. I reread the book last year, and still didn't want it to end.
Back to The Odd Thomas books/films, l think that if Eddie is really that age then he must have Peter Pan looks, I think he looks much younger, and still see him being a brilliant Odd!

I’d also like to see some of Mercedes Lackey’s book made into film or TV. The Heralds of Valdermar (Talia, Vanyel, Alberich storied would be good). Also her other books like Diana Tremayne etc.
And Anne McCaffrey’s amazing SF books, not just the Pern books but the ‘Tower’ series with Rosen and Damia.
The problem, like some pp’s mention of other books, is that much of the ‘action’ is cerebral.
I would also like to see a really good and true to the book interpretation of the Mary Stewart ‘Merlin’ trilogy, including the fourth book about Mordred.

Has anyone else was the Anthony Price spy series starting with ‘The Labyrinth Makers’? Main character is David Audley who works for the...ahem....Home Office, but is, at heart, an academic Middle East specialist. Set in the Cold War Luke Smiley, clever but not so obtuse. They did a 3 programme mini-series in the seventies with Terence Stamp as the lead, but it’s got huge potential for several series as there are lots of books and the stories are very cleverly intertwined with historical events (difficult to explain). I like the people who did ‘Foyle’s War’ to do these justice.

stories not storied
Rowen not Rosen
like not Luke
Bloody autocorrect changing things behind my back.....

thanks BI3ss3dm0m I didnt know about the Mists of Avalon film, I'll have to look it up.

One thing I have remembered since posting is that there was an Australian TV series called A Town Like Alice starring Bryan Brown. It came out 1981 apparently - dont know if it was the same plotline as the film?

I'd go for 'The unpleasant profession of Jonathon Hoag'

Toby Jones would be a great Shardlake. I like the Gorianus the Finder books as well set in Classical Rome.

I would like Mike Leigh to do Eleanor Oliphant.

Oooh yes Toby Jones for Shardlake!

I know channel 4 has adapted a dance to the music of time, too but I'm a bit scared to watch it. I have very fond memories and vivid pictures in my mind of the books.

Sisters of the Quantock Hills could make a good series, too. I keep meaning to buy them to reread. I adored them!

Anything by Sharon Penman but especially The Sunne In Spleandour. No idea why she's ever been optioned for TV dramas, she's amazing (better than Gregory IMHO).