Books
Why This Year Will Be Great For Book-Lovers
There are many things to look forward to when starting a new year, but I especially look forward to book events. A new year means new books, and new books mean happiness. Yes, maybe my TBR list is getting ridiculously long, but that just means I need to make a resolution to read more. Then again — that's my resolution every year, because you can never read too much, right?
If you’re a fellow book nerd, it’s time to turn to a fresh page in your planner and mark some exciting events in 2017. From book releases to film releases to general literary news, there are tons of book-related reasons that 2017 will be a great year. Authors have your back, and they have been working hard to ensure that your bookshelf will overflow by the end of 2017.
You’ll probably still be making resolutions to read more by 2018, because the following literary events will have your TBR list longer than last year’s. Get a head start by setting aside time right now for reading and watching book-inspired movies, because this year will fill up your calendar faster than you can say “accio books.” Here are seven reasons why 2017 will be an incredible year for all book-lovers.
Book-To-Movie Adaptations
There are tons of book-to-movie adaptations premiering this year. Here are a few to mark on your calendar:
January 27, 2017: A Dog's Purpose, based on the book by W. Bruce Cameron, starring Josh Gad and Dennis Quaid
Feburary 17, 2017: The Dark Tower, based on the series by Stephen King, starring Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey
April 7, 2017: Wonder, based on the book by R.J. Palacio, starring Jacob Tremblay, Julia Roberts, and Daveed Diggs
April 28, 2017: The Circle, based on the book by Dave Eggers, starring Emma Watson, Tom Hanks, and John Boyega
June 2, 2017: Captain Underpants, based on the series by Dav Pilkey, starring Ed Helms, Kevin Hart, Kristen Schaal, Jordan Peele, and Nick Kroll
July 28, 2017: A Wrinkle in Time, based on the book by Madeleine L'Engle, starring Oprah Winfrey and directed by Ava DuVernay (with a screenplay written by Frozen's Jennifer Lee)
Sometime in 2017: The Bell Jar, based on the book by Sylvia Plath, starring Dakota Fanning and directed by Kirsten Dunst
'The Beauty And The Beast' Movie
This may not be a book-to-movie adaptation, but Belle is the bookworm princess that all readers adore. Emma Watson, who also played beloved reader Hermione Granger, will star with Dan Stevens in this highly anticipated musical film out March 17, 2017.
New Novels From Your Favorite Authors
Your favorite authors have new books coming out in 2017. Here are some of the most anticipated releases:
January 3, 2017: Difficult Women by Roxanne Gay (author of An Untamed State and Bad Feminist)
January 24, 2017: Perfect Little World by Kevin Wilson (author of The Family Fang)
May 2, 2017: Into the Water by Paula Hawkins (author of The Girl on the Train)
May 9, 2017: House of Names by Colm Tóibín (author of Brooklyn)
May 9, 2017: Woman No. 17 by Edan Lepucki (author of California)
New Books From New Authors
You might find your next favorite author in 2017, because there are some great debut novels to look forward to from new authors. Here are a few I'm marking on my calendar:
Final Girls by Riley Sager (expected publication July 18th, 2017): Quincy Carpenter was the sole survivor of a massacre, becoming a member of the Final Girls, a club of women who were also sole survivors of attacks. But that was ten years ago, and now Quincy is doing great — until the first final girl is killed, and the second shows up on Quincy's doorstep. Stephen King calls this the first great thriller of the new year.
All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai (expected publication February 7th, 2017): Protagonist Tom Barren lives in 2016, but it's an alternate history 2016 that looks as people in the 1950s imagined it would be, complete with flying cars and moon bases. But after a time travel mishap, Tom is stuck in our version of 2016, and must navigate his alternate reality life.
The Leavers by Lisa Ko (expected publication May 2nd, 2017): Deming Guo's mother, an undocumented Chinese immigrant, disappears when he's eleven. He is adopted by two white college professors, renamed Daniel Wilkinson, and moved from the Bronx to a small town upstate. Ten years later, Daniel struggles to reconcile the mysteries of his past with his present in this PEN/Bellwether Prize-winning novel.
YA Sequels
There are several young adult sequels — and last books in the series — to look forward to this year. Add these to your TBR list:
January 3rd, 2017: Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken (Passenger #2)
February 7, 2017: King's Cage by Victoria Aveyard (Red Queen #3)
February 28, 2017: The Ship Beyond Time by Heidi Heilig (The Girl From Everywhere #2)
May 2nd, 2017: A Court of Wings and Ruin By Sarah J. Maas (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3)
May 2nd, 2017: Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han (To All the Boys I've Loved Before #3)
Wonder Woman
She's a fierce comic book heroine, and she's going to be the star of both a DC film and a YA novel. Wonder Woman: Warbringer, a coming-of-age tale by Six of Crows author Leigh Bardugo, will be released June 2nd, 2017.
More J.K. Rowling Projects
The 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is this year (it was first published in the UK in 1997). There are a couple forthcoming Rowling projects to look forward to even 20 years later — from the illustrated Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (expected October 2017) to the fourth Cormoran Strike mystery (expected sometime this year).
