11 Books to Read Before They Become 2019’s Blockbusters

So when the next big film hits theatres, you can aggravate everyone around you by claiming: "the book was better."

Date January 31, 2019

When Kevin Kwan’s Crazy Rich Asians had its big Hollywood moment in 2018, year-over-year sales for the book trilogy increased 300 percent. After watching the lavish lives of Singapore’s elite come to life on film, fans were anxious to get their hands on the source material and dive deeper into the story.

The book isn’t always better, but it does always offer more context. Which is why, if you love a story, you should both watch the film and flip through the pages that inspired it. And, in the midst of this high-profile book-adaptation boom, it seems you have ample opportunity: some of the biggest films of 2018—If Beale Street Could Talk, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, Annihilation, A Wrinkle in Time, Boy Erased, Beautiful Boy, First Man—were adapted from best-sellers.

Here’s a rundown of the books you might want to pick up in preparation for 2019’s big-screen lineup:

1/11

A Dog’s Way Home by W. Bruce Cameron

A heartwarming—and likely tear-jerking—story about a dog’s 400-mile journey home to her human.

Starring… Bryce Dallas Howard, Ashley Judd
For fans of… Marley & Me, Homeward Bound, Old Yeller
The movie… A Dog’s Way Home
Coming to theatres… January 11

2/11

The Rhythm Section by Mark Burnell

A grieving woman takes on multiple identities as she seeks revenge against the terrorists who killed her family.

Starring… Blake Lively, Jude Law, Sterling K. Brown
For fans of… Kill Bill, Revenge, Red Sparrow
The movie… The Rhythm SectionComing to theatres… February 22

3/11

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

A boy abandons his home after learning a dark secret about its past. The twist? He lives on a planet where everyone can hear one another’s thoughts.

Starring… Tom Holland, Daisy Ridley
For fans of… Maze Runner, Divergent
The movie… Chaos Walking
Coming to theatres… March 1

4/11

Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

15-year-old Bee comically narrates what happens when her mother, Bernadette Fox, goes missing before their family trip to Antarctica.

Starring… Cate Blanchett, Kristen Wiig, Laurence Fishburne, Troian Bellisario
For fans of… Gone Girl, A Simple Favour
The movie… Where’d You Go, Bernadette
Coming to theatres… March 22

5/11

The Good Shepherd by C.S. Forester

This 1955 novel sees a U.S. Navy captain working through his past during World War II’s Battle of the Atlantic.

Starring… Tom Hanks, Elisabeth Shue, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo
For fans of… Catch-22, Dunkirk
The movie… Greyhound
Coming to theatres… March 22

6/11

The Visible Filth by Nathan Ballingrud

A frightening novella about a man who finds an abandoned cell phone. He begins to receive strange messages, discovers horrific videos and images, and is brought into a grim nightmare.

Starring… Dakota Johnson, Armie Hammer, Zazie Beetz
For fans of… Get Out, When a Stranger Calls
The movie… Wounds
Coming to theatres… March 29

7/11

The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South by Osha Gray Davidson

The title pretty much says it all. A KKK member and black single mother forge a friendship as they meet to discuss bigotry in 1960s North Carolina.

Starring… Taraji P. Henson, Sam Rockwell
For fans of… The Help, Hidden Figures
The movie…The Best of Enemies
Coming to theatres… April 5

8/11

The Aftermath by Rhidian Brook

Set in post-World War II Germany, this love triangle sees a Colonel and his wife forced to share their home with a German widower and his daughter.

Starring… Keira Knightley, Alexander Skarsgård, Roman Reigns
For fans of… Atonement, Allied
The movie… The Aftermath
Coming to theatres… April 26

9/11

The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn

Anna spends her time watching her new NYC neighbours through her windows. Then, she witnesses something she wasn’t meant to see.

Starring… Amy Adams, Julianne Moore, Gary Oldman
For fans of… The Girl On the Train
The movie…The Woman in the Window
Coming to theatres… October 4

10/11

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

A teenage boy is sent to live with a wealthy family after his mother’s death. A painting he takes from the scene of her death is his singular source of hope—but it draws him into a world of crime.

Starring… Nicole Kidman, Sarah Paulson, Ansel Elgort
For fans of…Great Expectations, Baby Driver
The movie…The Goldfinch
Coming to theatres… October 11

11/11

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Directed by Greta Gerwig, this latest adaptation of the classic novel follows four sisters as they journey from childhood to womanhood.

Starring… Meryl Streep, Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Timothée Chalamet
For fans of… Anne of Green Gables, Pride and Prejudice
The movie… Little Women
Coming to theatres… December 25