Novels into Film: The Encyclopedia of Movies Adapted from Books

by John C. Tibbetts, James M. Welsh

Examines more than 120 literary works and their screen adaptations, discussing ways in which the films differed from their sources, how the visions of the director and the author differed, and the critical and commercial success of each film.

Genres: Nonfiction

298 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1999

About the author

John C. Tibbetts is an associate professor in the department of film & media studies at the University of Kansas, where he teaches courses in film history, media studies, and theory and aesthetics. He is an author, educator, broadcaster, as well as an artist and pianist. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Kansas in multi-disciplinary studies (art history, theater, photography and film).

As a broadcaster and journalist and scholar he has hosted his own television show in Kansas City, Missouri; worked as a news reporter/ commentator for CBS Television (KCTV) and National Public Radio; produced classical music programming for KXTR-FM radio; written (and illustrated) ten books, more than 200 articles, and several short stories.

His current radio series are The World of Robert Schumann (currently being broadcast worldwide on the WFMT Radio Network) and Piano Portraits (a 17-episode series of interviews with world-class concert pianists).

Among his awards is the 2008 Kansas Governor's Arts Award.

Invited conference appearances include "The Robert Schumann Bicentenary Conference" in Zwickau, Germany (2010); The International Popular Culture Conference in Warsaw, Poland (July 2012); and the "Portland International Piano Festival" in Portland (5-8 June 2014).

He spent a sabbatical trip in Australia, where he researched a book on Australian cinema.

Reviews

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exactly says on the title, it covers notable literary works that have been adapted into major motion pictures from the early days of filmmaking to the late 1990s. Regardless of whether or not these novels-to-films were successful, John Tibbetts & James Welsh looks into notable adaptations. In which, they go into analyzing the novels and compare them to how they are presented visually to the public. While some literary enthusiasts would say the novels are better, the authors show that's not always the case, with some films are better at presenting the story than the source material whether through cutting around the fluff or re-tweaking the book's message to a more cohesive structure. As the authors imply in their writing, the best movies based on books are ones that managed to capture the essence of the story while successfully translating words into a way that can work onscreen, even if it means adding something original to the film.

While I found this encyclopedia interesting, mainly looking at familiar works and seeing what they consider the better film version out of the bunch. However, because it covers a vast amount of books, it can be very tedious in details. Moreover, some adaptations are overlooked or rarely given a mention in the authors' opinion on where they stand in the pack. And at times, it can be a little dry in analysis, but still worth a read for filmgoers and bookworms who are interested in learning the versions through the years.