--- description: From Harry Potter to Paper Towns, these are the best Young Adult books-to-movie adaptations title: 27 Young Adult Books That Became Major Movies image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 27 Kids' Books That Became Major Movies by [ashley Ross](/author/ashley-ross/) ## ashley Ross Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 24, 2015 2:28 PM CUT by [ashley Ross](/author/ashley-ross/) ## ashley Ross Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 24, 2015 2:28 PM CUT The young adult book-to-movie adaptation trend is anything but new. As John Green’s _Paper Towns_ hits theaters Friday, check out some of the best books that went from page to screen. ### Harry Potter  Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, from left, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger and Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley in Warner Bros. Pictures' fantasy adventure "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2," a Warner Bros. Pictures release. (Jaap Buitendijk/Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures/MCT) ORG XMIT: 1104628 Warner Bros. The seven Harry Potter books were adapted into eight movies, kicking off the trend of splitting a series’ final book into two films. The final film, _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2_, raked in more than $1.3 billion worldwide. ### The Fault in Our Stars  James Bridges—20th Century Fox John Green’s first book to head to theaters captured audiences with the love story of Augustus and Hazel, two terminally ill teenagers who taught readers and viewers that a short life can still be a good life. ### Paper Towns  20th Century Fox Green’s second book to be adapted, by the same screenwriters who took _Fault_ to the movies, follows Quentin as he tries to track down Margo Roth Spiegelman, his elusive crush who goes missing after the two spend a night together pranking their high school classmates. ### The Spectacular Now  Andrew Lauren Productions Tim Tharp’s _The Spectacular Now,_ a 2008 National Book Award Finalist, earned Sundance buzz in 2013 thanks to Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller’s on-screen chemistry and the film’s realistic portrayal of teenage tragedy. ### The Book Thief  \_U5B9936April 06, 2013.cr2 Jules Heath—20th Century Fox Markus Zusak’s 2005 novel of the same name told the story of Liesel Meminger, who witnesses the horrors of the Nazis and learns to read from the Jewish man her foster parents are hiding in their basement. ### The Hunger Games  SS\_D142-42501.dng Color Force Suzanne Collins’ trilogy hit bookshelves in 2008 and catapulted to box office success in 2012 when Jennifer Lawrence took on the role of Katniss Everdeen, who fights against a totalitarian government in a dystopian society. ### If I Stay  \_DSC8877.NEF Doane Gregory—Warner Bros. Chloe Grace Moretz starred as Mia in the 2014 adaptation of Gayle Forman’s 2010 novel about a 17-year-old girl who watches herself in a coma after her family is in a fatal car accident. ### Holes  Walt Disney Pictures Louis Sachar wrote the screenplay for the movie based on his 1998 novel about a young boy named Stanley Yelnats who attends a juvenile detention camp with a secret history. ### Matilda  MATILDA - Cursed with obtuse parents and a martinet school principal, 6-year-old Matilda Wormwood immerses herself in books. With so much mental stimulation, she acquires telekinetic abilities -- which she unleashes on her family and odious headmistress. "Matilda" will air on ABC Family's 13 Nights of Halloween. (TRISTAR PICTURES, INC./FRANCOIS DUHAMEL) DANNY DEVITO, MARA WILSON, BRIAN LEVINSON, RHEA PERLMAN Francois Duhamel—Tristar Pictures Inc. Roald Dahl’s 1988 book hit theaters eight years after publication, starring Mara Wilson, Rhea Perlman and Danny DeVito, who also directed and narrated the movie. ### The Outsiders  Warner Bros. S.E. Hinton’s 1967 novel about Ponyboy Curtis and the gangs of his hometown was published went the author was just 18 years old. The 1983 adaptation starred Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Tom Cruise and Patrick Swayze. ### The Giver  MERYL STREEP and JEFF BRIDGES star in THE GIVER David Bloomer—The Weinstein Company Lois Lowry’s 1993 novel is an early example of young adult fiction tackling dystopian themes. Despite being optioned for the screen in 1995, it took five screenplays and nearly 20 years before the 2014 film, starring Meryl Streep, Jeff Bridges and Taylor Swift, finally hit theaters. ### Little Women  Columbia Pictures Louisa May Alcott’s novel, published in two parts in the 1860s, follows four sisters from childhood to adulthood. It’s been adapted six times total, twice as silent versions. The most recent, out in 1994, starred Winona Ryder, Kirsten Dunst, Susan Sarandon, Christian Bale and Claire Danes. ### The Hobbit  New Line Cinema J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 fantasy novel was adapted as a trilogy, starting in 2012 with _An Unexpected Journey. Lord of the Rings_ director Peter Jackson concluded Bilbo Baggins’ saga withThe Desolation of Smaug in 2013 and _The Battle of the Five Armies_ in 2014. ### The Lord of the Rings  Pierre Vinet—Wingnut Films Tolkien’s three-part follow up to _The Hobbit_ was adapted in 2001, 2002 and 2003, with the final film, _The Return of the King_, winning all of its 11 Academy Award nominations, including Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture. ### The Wizard of Oz  Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer L. Frank Baum’s _The Wonderful Wizard of Oz_ was published in 1900 and became wildly popular thanks to the 1939 film adaptation starring Judy Garland as Dorothy. Though it lost out to _Gone with the Wind_ for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, it did win Best Original Song for “Over the Rainbow.” ### Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland  Walt Disney Pictures The 1865 novel by Lewis Carroll has graced the silver screen more than 10 times, most recently in 2010 when director Tim Burton retold Alice’s story as a 19-year-old who returns to the fantasy land from her childhood to dethrone the Red Queen, played by Helena Bonham Carter. ### Harriet the Spy  HARRIET THE SPY, Michelle Trachtenberg, 1996, (c)Paramount Pictures Nickelodeon Movies Michelle Trachtenberg starred in the 1996 film adaptation of Louise Fitzhugh’s 1964 novel about an 11-year-old girl whose notebook is stolen by classmates, revealing every honest thought she has about her peers. ### The Princess Bride  20th Century Fox The 1972 fantasy novel is often forgotten as a book, thanks in part to the eminently quotable 1987 cult classic starring Robin Wright and Mandy Patinkin. ### Ender’s Game  Chartoff Productions Orson Scott Card served as a producer for the 2013 film based on his 1986 sci-fi book about the gifted Ender Wiggin, a child being trained to fight an alien species. ### Hugo  Jaap Buitendijk—GK Films Martin Scorsese adapted Brian Selznick’s 2007 illustrated novel into the 2011 Academy Award-winning film _Hugo,_ which starred Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, Sacha Baron Cohen, Ben Kingsley, Jude Law and Richard Griffiths. ### Divergent  (L-R) SHAILENE WOODLEY and THEO JAMES star in DIVERGENT Jaap Buitendijk—Summit Entertainment Veronica Roth’s Divergent trilogy was first published in 2011 and then adapted into an ongoing four-part film series in 2014\. Shailene Woodley stars as heroine Tris Prior, who, like other protagonists in similar dystopian novels, fights against an oppressive government. ### Twilight  Summit Entertainment Stephenie Meyer’s vampire-romance saga was adapted into a series of five films starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, grossing more than $3 billion worldwide. ### Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants  Warner Bros. Ann Brashares’ series about an ordinary pair of pants that magically fits four very different girls was adapted into two films starring Blake Lively, Alexis Bledel, America Ferrera and Amber Tamblyn. The movies also inspired real-life friendships between the actresses, which they’ve documented on [social media](https://instagram.com/p/uTmAqoHR-j/ "undefined"). ### The Princess Diaries  Walt Disney Pictures Meg Cabot’s 2000 novel was adapted into a movie in 2001 that was produced by Whitney Houston. The film, which starred Julie Andrews and a young Anne Hathaway, even spawned a sequel. ### The Perks of Being a Wallflower  Summit Entertainment Stephen Chbosky wrote and directed the 2012 film version of his 1990 book that follows Charlie through his turbulent freshman year of high school. The film starred Emma Watson in one of her first post-Harry Potter leading roles. 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