Culture and Lifestyle Activities and Entertainment Books 10 Books We Wish Would Be Made Into Movies By Southern Living Editors Southern Living Editors Since 1966, the editors of Southern Living have been carrying out the mission of the brand: to bring enjoyment, fulfillment, and inspiration to our readers by celebrating life in the South. We inspire creativity in their homes, their kitchens, their gardens, and their personal style. We are a friend they can trust, a guide to the seasons, a helping hand during the holidays, and a relentless champion of the Southern way of life. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on July 19, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Towfiqu Barbhuiya/EyeEm/Getty Images Do you cast the film while you're reading the book? Then you probably have a list of books you wish would be made into movies, asap. Our editors have a few of those too, and we're dreaming about the days when the stories we love reading finally hit the big screen. With books by Fannie Flagg, Katie Kitamura, Taylor Jenkins Reid, and Jasmine Guillory, this list argues that with the right vision, any book could be a movie. In any case, there are more than a few stories that deserve the silver-screen treatment, so read on for a few of our dream book-to-film adaptations, and then let us know what's currently on your list of books that should be made into movies. 01 of 10 On Beauty by Zadie Smith amazon.com Zadie Smith's 2005 novel is loosely based on E.M. Forster's novel Howards End. A story about the complications that arise between and among families, it's just waiting for the right ensemble to bring it to life on screen. BUY IT: $18, bookshop.org 02 of 10 Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man by Fannie Flagg amazon.com Fannie Flagg's debut novel deserves the movie treatment, don't you think? This book follows young Daisy Fay, who's growing up with a cast of characterful neighbors on the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the 1950s. BUY IT: $18, bookshop.org 03 of 10 The Dutch House by Ann Patchett amazon.com Ann Patchett's Philadelphia-set novel earned lots of fans when it was published in 2019. A story about siblings tangled up in their family history, it has dramatic potential as well as the opportunity for exciting production design. (Wouldn't you love to see the eponymous Dutch house?) BUY IT: $17, bookshop.org 04 of 10 Intimacies by Katie Kitamura amazon.com Katie Kitamura's new novel is a complex and thrilling story about an interpreter at The Hague dealing with heartbreak and incendiary global politics. Laced with compelling language and plenty of drama, it would make a fantastic jump to the big screen. BUY IT: $18, bookshop.org 05 of 10 Less by Andrew Sean Greer amazon.com Andrew Sean Greer's bighearted novel about an author traveling the globe to avoid the wedding of his former partner—and finding so many hiccups along the way—would make for an uproarious film, but it would tug at the heartstrings too. BUY IT: $17, bookshop.org 06 of 10 Maybe In Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid amazon.com A young woman makes an important choice in this hard-to-put-down novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid. It leads to two Sliding Doors-style paths, two alternate realities of her life, which play out amid questions of fate, love, and free will. BUY IT: $18, bookshop.org 07 of 10 One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez amazon.com There are whispers of a multi-episode adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez's epic One Hundred Years of Solitude. Fingers are crossed that this sweeping story, first published in 1967, will make it to our screens sooner rather than later. BUY IT: $17, bookshop.org 08 of 10 The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles amazon.com From the author of Rules of Civility and A Gentleman in Moscow comes this sweeping road novel that's about self-discovery and starting over—and is peopled with an exciting cast of characters. BUY IT: $17, bookshop.org 09 of 10 Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory amazon.com Any of Jasmine Guillory's novels would make great movies—The Wedding Date, The Proposal, Royal Holiday—but Hollywood should start with this one, a story about a woman who joins her daughter on a work trip and finds more than she'd bargained for while she's abroad. BUY IT: $16, bookshop.org 10 of 10 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand amazon.com There are also whispers of a 28 Summers movie in the works, which is good news, because this decades-spanning romance set along the coast in Nantucket is ripe for a Hollywood adaptation. BUY IT: $18, bookshop.org Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit