Movies or Television Shows and the Books You Did Not Know They Were Based On

September 9, 2015August 19, 2015 / Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

We know that many television shows and movies are based on books. Love them or hate them hits like Twilight, Harry Potter, Gone Girl, True Blood, Game of Thrones, and many more were based on (or inspired by) the written word. However, there are so many more movies and television series that you have already seen, or could be currently binge watching, that are also based on books and you just do not know it. Here are some of the titles that I thought were the most interesting or surprising.

Pitch Perfect the film may have been based on Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate A Cappella Glory by Mickey Rapkin, a non-fiction book about a capella competitions, but I have to imagine that the movie version is much more audibly entertaining.

The movie Die Hard is based on Nothing Lasts Forever by Roderick Thorp. The book was published in the late ’70s, and went out of print before the movie adaptation was released almost a decade later.

Shrek! by William Steig is a picturebook about an ogre who falls in love with an “ugly” princess, so part of the concept remained when the animated version of Shrek was made.

Forrest Gump by Winston Groom might have been changed a great deal in the film adaptation of Forrest Gump. However, the award-winning film certainly helped book sales.

Gordon Buford wrote Car, Boy, Girl in 1961, seven years before the first Herbie the Love Bug adaptation.

The Brave Little Toaster by Thomas M. Disch was a critically acclaimed science fiction novella long before it was turned into a beloved children’s movie, also named The Brave Little Toaster, it was nominated for both a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award.

The self-help book Queen Bees & Wannabes by Rosalind Wiseman might not seem like the typical book to inspire a movie. However, it is what Mean Girls is based on.

Ted Hughes, former poet laureate of England, wrote a children’s book called The Iron Giant in 1968. The animated movie, also titled The Iron Giant, was released in 1999.

Jack Bickham wrote The Apple Dumpling Gang, a novel about orphans during the California gold rush. Disney adapted it into the classic The Apple Dumpling Gang with Don Knotts in 1975.

I know of a few more that were surprising, either because I did not know the book existed or because the adaptation so barely resembled the book that I could not recognize it. Are there any here that surprised you, and do you know of any more book to movie or television series adaptations that might be surprising? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments.

One Million Steps

September 7, 2015August 31, 2015 / Susan O. / 1 Comment

I read a an eclectic variety of books; I rarely set out to read a specific book, unless I have a reason. Books come into my hands; if they sound intriguing, whether neurology, biography, the history of Times Square, or a fantasy novel, I read them. As a writer, I may step outside my normal zone of interest as part of research for something I’m writing. Such was my current situation, researching background details for a fictional warrior culture I was developing.

I don’t follow military anything. Yes, my grandfather was in the Navy, my uncles and cousins in the army, Uncle Laurie was lost at sea in WWII, and Uncle Art was a Marine at Iwo Jima, but that’s not the same as being from a military family, where service is a way of life. No one in my family has seen combat in 50 years, so I needed a lot of research. I didn’t want a diatribe on why we did what we did, the politics involved, or a lot of technical jargon that was going to make my head spin. I needed to know what it was like in the trenches, how do you respond when pinned down by gunfire, how do you get yourself out? What do you do when the population you’re fighting for wants you dead?

And I found a number of books and films that were not just entertaining, but fascinating to read and watch.

If you can read just one book on the subject – one – read “One Million Steps: A Marine Platoon at War” by Bing West. West, a Viet Nam vet, embedded with Kilo Company, a Marine rifle company of the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Marine Regiment (3/5). This was exactly the book I was looking for. West takes you along with the Marines as they walk their daily walk in Sangin, Afghanistan, the worst sector for casualties. Each day’s walk was approximately 5,000 steps; their rotation was up after 200 days, or approximately one million steps, a million steps that could trigger a mine or a bullet from a mostly invisible enemy. In a country torn by war for decades, no one was welcoming them as liberators. West is actually critical of the war without being nasty about it, showing you how the policies over the years, the lack of unified vision from the uppermost tiers, the conflicting orders from above all kept the troops from doing what they were trained and equipped to do: take out the Taliban. This was a wonderful book, easy to read, easy to follow, and left you with deep respect for every man who who went over there.

I also read “The Reaper: Autobiography of One of the Deadliest Special Ops Snipers” by Nicholas Irving. Although it’s simple to read, I would not rate it close to West’s book. His story – most likely ghost-written, rambles along like you’re sitting next to him at a bus station. He gives detailed accounts of one or two missions, but the rest – you might as well be talking to him at a birthday party while he tells you his life. He may be a very good sniper, but he’s not a great storyteller.

If you don’t have time to sit and read, there are some great war films out there, both fiction and non-fiction, that will put you in the line of fire. The Hornet’s Nest is probably the most realistic of them, because it’s actual footage. A father and son journalism team go to Afghanistan to cover what is supposed to be a one-day strike that turns into a harrowing nine-day seige. If you want to see and feel exactly what goes on, this is your film. You will be riveted.

If you’re looking for more of a Hollywood polish, I recommend The Hurt Locker, starring Jeremy Renner as a bomb disposal expert addicted to the adrenaline rush he gets in the face of danger. It has the documentary style, and will keep you on the edge of your seat. An ex-Marine handed me Full Metal Jacket, which I’d only heard of. A serious and yet farcical film directed by Stanley Kubrick in the best of the 70s style, FMJ gives you all the grit of Viet Nam with the horrific insensibility of M*A*S*H*. For any Firefly fans, check out a very young Adam Baldwin toting an old-fashioned Vera. I watched it three times in one week. Another I recommend is 9th Company, which is a Russian film about battles the Russians fought in Afghanistan in the 80’s. If you don’t mind subtitles, it’s an action-packed film that gives a non-American perspective.

Sometimes you have to step away from your comfort zone to find something wonderful. This time, I hit the jackpot.

Home Sweet Home

September 4, 2015August 19, 2015 / Linda / Leave a comment

I moved into a new home this year. It’s still a work in progress. I love watching home improvement shows on TV. It’s fun to see what other people come up with in tackling various buying, selling, redecorating, or renovating problems. It’s also fun to look through various ‘home’ magazines for ideas and inspiration. If you’re looking to do a little work on your home, or just like to look at beautiful pictures, the Cheshire Library offers quite a few magazines that satisfy a variety of styles and tastes.

Architectural Digest

*Better Homes & Gardens

This Old House

Veranda

*Also available on Zinio.

The Cheshire Library also has a wonderful selection of books to help guide you through the process or help inspire you. Click on the headings below to access our catalog.

Decorating

Home Improvment

Home Decor

What’s Happening at Cheshire Library in September

September 2, 2015August 28, 2015 / cheshirelib / Leave a comment

Did you know that September is Library Card Sign-up Month? A time to remind parents and children that a library card is the most important school supply of all. While you don’t need a library card to participate in our great programs, there are a lot of great things your library card can do for you, so don’t miss out!

On our program roster this month:

Mindfulness Workshop for Kids

Thursdays, September 3, 10, 17, 24, October 1, 8, 15, 22 at 4:00 pm.

Children are leading an increasingly busy life with school, sports events, music lessons and more. So they also experience that rushed pace. Mindfulness techniques train you to pay attention to those things in the present moment in a nonjudgmental and accepting manner. This gives children the opportunity to stop and choose a response thoughtfully rather than reacting impulsively. Parents/caregivers will be participating in this 8-week program as well through mindfulness exercises with your child and through a book discussion. The book Mindful Parenting by Dr. Kristen Race will be used to discuss techniques for mindful parenting. Register on our website beginning August 15.

SAT Preparation Seminar

Tuesday Sep 8, 2015, 6:30 – 8:00 PM

Prominent language arts tutor, Ellis Ratner, will present this free SAT Preparation Seminar. This program will address all aspects of the Reading and Writing Sections, including sentence completion, reading comprehension, grammar and essay writing. Attendees will also receive, free of charge, an SAT Preparation Primer authored by Mr. Ratner. Please register on our website.

Bouncing Babies

Mondays at 10:00 AM

This new drop-in program is a special time to interact with stories, songs, rhymes, and lap bounces. This fun and interactive time features music, repetition, rhymes, puppets, instruments, and felt boards. A must-do for babies and toddlers! Ages birth to 2 years.Drop-in, no registration required.

Curious George Curiosity Day

Thursday Sep 17, 2015, 6:00 – 6:45 PM

Each year fun-filled, family-friendly “Curiosity Day” celebrations occur in cities around the country celebrating everyone’s favorite monkey, Curious George. Come join the Cheshire Public Library Curiosity Celebration full of stories and songs, and a snack even Curious George would love. This program is a family friendly program, best for kids ages 2 and up. (REGISTRATION?)

Fab Film Saturday: Disney’s Cinderella

Saturday Sep 19, 2015, 2:00 – 4:00 PM

Come enjoy some great box office kids’ movies with Fab Film Saturdays at Cheshire Public Library!

Disney’s CINDERELLA (2015). Celebrate Disney’s CINDERELLA, a modern classic that shines with beauty, imagination… and magic! Despite being bulled by her stepmother (Cate Blanchett) and stepsisters, a spirited Ella (Lily James) resolves to take charge of her fate. Add a royal ball, a Fairy Godmother (Helenal Bonham-Carter) and a glass slipper, and suddenly — magic becomes reality! Running Time 2 hours, 24 minutes. Rated PG. No registration required. Feel free to bring your own snacks!

Cigar Box Purse Craft Class

Thursday Sep 24, 2015, 6:00 – 8:00 PM

Please join Vanessa Fasanella as she teaches how to make cigar box purse in this adult crafting class. Design purse and handles; transform a recycled cigar box into a usable purse. This adult only class is free and all materials will be provided. Registration required as space is limited so register early. Registration on our website.

Town-Wide Photo Scavenger Hunt

Saturday Sep 26, 2015, 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM

Grab your friends, family, and mobile device for a scavenger hunt that will take you all around Cheshire! To participate, form a team that will fit in one vehicle, pick up a list of clues from Cheshire Library on the morning of the hunt, and drive around town solving each clue. Post a photo of each clue to Instagram and use the tag #cheshirehunt2015, then return to the Library in the afternoon for refreshments and prizes. Prizes will be chosen across several categories, such as creativity and number of clues solved, and by random drawing.

Pre-registration of teams is required. One team and one Instagram account per vehicle.

9:30-11:00 am – Clue pick-up in Baldwin Room (Instagram help will be available)

10:00 am – Donuts with Grownups Storytime on the Third Floor

3:30 pm – Post-hunt party in Baldwin Room
Please register on our website.

Donuts with Grownups Storytime

Saturday Sep 26, 2015, 10:00 AM

Donuts with Grownups Storytime is designed especially for working families with children ages 3 and up who can’t make it to our regularly schedule storytimes during the week. Enjoy crafts, activities, music, stories and of course Donuts as a family! This program is designed as a family event to give bonding time. Each session will also have a literacy building station to help young ones start building necessary pre-literacy skills or enhance those skills for older children. Best suited for children age 3-8. No Registration Required. This program will meet on the Third Floor of the Library.

Help, I’m Addicted to Sugar! (and white flour)

Monday Sep 28, 2015, 6:30 – 8:00 PM

Are afternoon and evening munchies getting the better of you? Do chips, cookies and breads call your name – even though your good intentions and knowledge try to push them away? Getting over these uncontrollable eating urges can be a lot easier than you think, and it doesn’t even have much to do with willpower at all. This is a highly motivational presentation showing exactly why this “vicious cookie cycle” occurs – and most importantly, what to do about it. Seating for this event is limited. Please register online or call 203-272-2245, ext. 4.

‘Who Was’ Book Club: HELEN KELLER

Wednesday Sep 30, 2015, 4:00 – 5:00 PM

If you love reading books from the ‘Who Was’ series, than this is the book club for you! At the meeting, we’ll chat about what we discovered in the book and do one or more fun activities inspired by that persons life. No need to register – all fans of the series are welcome! Copies of Who Was Helen Keller? will be available to borrow from the Children’s Room.

Colonial Goodwife

Wednesday Sep 30, 2015, 6:30 – 8:00 PM

The “Not-So-Good Life of The Colonial Goodwife” not only makes audience members laugh and grimace, but it also honors our foremothers. It’s not about quilting bees and spinning wheels – it’s an interactive presentation about the little-known issues faced by New England’s colonial women.Enjoy a complimentary cup of organic herbal Women’s Tonic Tea as author Velya Jancz-Urban shares tidbits about issues faced by everyday 18th-century New England women. Seating for this event is limited. Please register online or call 203-272-2245, ext. 4.

Young Adult Books Without Romance

August 31, 2015August 4, 2015 / Sharon Tyler / 2 Comments

Do you love young adult books but have found yourself bored with the love triangles and angst that comes with the almost constant presence of a complicated love interest? Well, I have gone in search of young adult books that entertain and are romance free! Here are some of the best young adult books that steer clear of the expected traps of young love. Some of these might have some flirting, or some hints of possible romance in the future, but I aimed for the books with no romance at all. This turned out to be a harder list than I expected to curate; so if you have additional titles to suggest please share them in the comments. I know I cannot be the only one to notice the lack in this area.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
After a family tragedy, Jacob feels compelled to explore an abandoned orphanage on an island off the coast of Wales, discovering disturbing facts about the children who were kept there.

Sabriel by Garth Nix
Sabriel, daughter of the necromancer Abhorsen, must journey into the mysterious and magical Old Kingdom to rescue her father from the Land of the Dead.

Here, There be Dragons by James A. Owen
Set in 1917, an undergraduate is given a special book that he is told was the reason for his professor’s murder and so must now protect it with his life as he goes on a journey like no other to places that are only supposed to exist in history and dreams.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
In 1943, a British fighter plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France and the survivor tells a tale of friendship, war, espionage and great courage as she relates what she must do to survive while keeping secret all that she can.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Leaving the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white high school, Junior struggles to find his place in his new surroundings in order to escape his destiny back on the reservation.

Going Bovine by Libba Bray
Dealing with an illness that will soon result in his death, 16-year-old Cam is intrigued by the stories told by an eccentric girl named Dulcie and so is encouraged to go on a wild road trip across America where their search for a special cure will lead them to the strangest places on the map.

For more romance free, or very light, here are some more suggestions; Deadline by Chris Crutcher, Katya’s World by Jonathan L. Howard, The Eye of Minds by James Dashner, The Alchemyst: the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott, The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, Monster by Walter Dean Myers, Butterfly by Sonya Hartnett, Orleans by Sherri L. Smith, The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, The Hobbit: or, There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Maze Runner by James Dashner,The Sky Inside by Clare B. Dunkle, Watership Down by Richard Adams, The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness, Killer of Enemies by Joseph Bruchac, or Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson.