{"id":22256,"date":"2017-07-21T08:00:54","date_gmt":"2017-07-21T12:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.publishersweekly.com\/blogs\/shelftalker\/?p=22256"},"modified":"2017-07-21T08:00:54","modified_gmt":"2017-07-21T12:00:54","slug":"it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.publishersweekly.com\/blogs\/shelftalker\/?p=22256","title":{"rendered":"To See Or Not to See"},"content":{"rendered":"

Movie adaptations can create exciting bubbles of energy and enthusiasm around beloved titles in a bookstore. Regardless of the box office performance, this can be a really great thing for a book. And why not? Who can resist the allure of seeing a beloved story or world brought to life? Of course, sales following the movie surge taper off and can even be impacted by a film\u2019s reception, but the heightened media awareness definitely helps get the book in readers\u2019 hands. We\u2019ve seen a huge surge in Captain Underpants series sales all summer; Everything, Everything<\/em> is going strong; and now we\u2019re starting to see a ramp up on A Wrinkle in Time<\/em>.
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“… if I have something\u00a0I want to say that is\u00a0too difficult for adults to swallow, then I will write it in a book for children.\u201d \u2013Madeleine L\u2019Engle<\/p><\/div>
\nI remember a post a few months ago from my colleague Elizabeth Bluemle about \u201cThe Book That Made You Fall in Love with Books<\/a>,\u201d expanding\u00a0upon a question from Benjamin Alire S\u00e1enz\u00a0that asked us all\u00a0to recall\u00a0the book that first really turned the reading light switch on. For me that first one was probably Little Women,<\/em> but the book that made the largest impact on me was A Wrinkle in Time. <\/em>Yes, the main character was called Meg and was somewhat awkward in her own skin, not always knowing how to relate to others. But beyond that personal connection, it was just exactly the right book for me at the right time. I found it mind-expanding and challenging in the best ways. Thoughtfully drawing from the rich traditions of science, theology, literature, and philosophy, this modern classic about three kids who are sent on an adventure through the cosmos navigates some incredibly ambitious territory and leaves readers reflecting on the nature of the universe, the human experience, and the forces of evil.\u00a0It\u2019s heady stuff for a 10-year-old. And it spurred me to want to read and learn more about so many things.
\nMy interest was naturally piqued this week when I saw the first trailer for Ava Duvernay\u2019s upcoming film. Dominated by stunning, colorful imagery, I am intrigued by\u00a0what I\u00a0can see so far\u2014especially because it\u00a0brought the book visually to life in ways I never expected. The luminous depictions of Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Which, and Mrs. Who are nothing like the images I conjured in my mind\u2019s eye as a kid (which honestly tended more toward frumpy), but feel astral and strange and somehow appropriate for fallen stars\u00a0nonetheless. And I am really excited to see such a diverse cast of characters, especially within the core Murry family itself. But despite my optimism\u00a0for the limited material\u00a0I can see so far, I can\u2019t help but feel trepidation whenever a favorite book is turned into a movie. Even if, or maybe especially if, I end up liking the movie too.
\nI think it\u2019s that absorbing someone else\u2019s interpretation of a beloved book\u2019s characters, settings, and themes can sometimes slightly change my relationship with the original. That\u2019s not necessarily good or necessarily bad, I suppose. But especially for the books I go back to, the ones special enough to re-read, part of the call to return comes from the desire to re-imagine the world. And after I\u2019ve seen the movie, I\u2019ve found I sometimes feel that impulse less often. Don\u2019t get me wrong, nothing can ever take away my personal relationship with a book like\u00a0A Wrinkle in Time<\/em>. At the same time I\u00a0wonder: Even while movies let us immerse ourselves in literary worlds in whole new ways, do we lose a little something along the way? I guess that’s why it’s such a personal choice each time. To see or not to see, that is the question. Right now I’m planning to see it next March!
\nWhat are your thoughts on movie adaptations? Will you be seeing this one?
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