Sunday 29 September 2013

Sunday September 29th, 2013 Books to Television














Frequently we talk about books being turned into movies, which often leads to vigorous debate over which is better.  At times like this a friend’s favourite J.W. Eagan quotation “never judge a book by its movie”, springs to mind.  Today I’d like to turn our attention to books which have made the leap to the smaller screen.  Many popular television series and miniseries started their lives as books.  Some may be based on a short story while others are based on a series.  We also have series that have inspired books, however let’s focus on the former.

With season premieres starting up, my household is eagerly awaiting the return of several programs that started out as books.  We’ve already enjoyed our return to Bones and are anticipating the return of The Walking Dead.  So which books to television can you find at your library?  Check out the following both in print and on DVD:

Bones is loosely based on Kathy Reichs’ series featuring the forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan.  You can find the books starting with Deja Dead published in 1997 right up to 2013’s Bones of the Lost.  We also have the show starting with season one up to season seven

The Walking Dead debuts its fourth season on October 13th, if you’re not familiar with the series prepare yourself for a world of zombies.  Vampires were cool but zombies are giving them a run for their money.  To prepare you can borrow seasons one and two or take out the graphic novels.  If the eighteen volumes of graphic novels aren’t enough to keep you going there are also young adult novels to meet your reading needs.

Speaking of vampires I know a lot of people who were sad to hear that season seven will be the last for True Blood.  While you’re waiting for the last season why don’t you start at the beginning?  We have seasons one through five on DVD plus all of Charlaine Harris’ books.    After Dead will be coming out soon and we’re already taking holds, so act fast!

For those seeking epic fantasy look no further than Game of Thrones.  This series has been extremely popular both on DVD and in the books that spawned it.  We have copies of seasons one and two for your viewing pleasure.  The books are available both in hard copy and as eBooks through Overdrive.

Space is running short so I’ll only briefly mention a few more books and series to check out.  We’re going to head back to my childhood for one of my favourites.  You may think you can guess it, but it’s probably not what you think.  The Flame Trees of Thika starring Hayley Mills was what I begged to watch.   I also recommend checking out Pride and Prejudice, the BBC miniseries for a six hour escape from modern concerns.  I would be remiss if I missed mentioning Dexter, especially as the series finale played just last Sunday.  If you’re an Elmore Leonard fan I hope you’ve caught Justified based on some of his novels.   Season five doesn’t start until January so there’s some time to catch up. 

If you think of some great ones I’ve missed please share them here on our Library Detective blog, we love to hear from you!
Ruth Hamlin-Douglas

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