Fantastic Mr. Fox and Crew

Despite what the folks in Hollywood think, some books should just remain books. But certain adaptations of children’s stories help to renew our enthusiasm for forgotten or overlooked titles. Most recently, Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr. Fox was brought to the big screen by Wes Anderson. Using exceedingly vivid stop-motion animation, Anderson rewrote the classic for adults with Noah Baumbauch.

The film works so well because it focuses on childlike themes of the story, such as sibling rivalry, while incorporating very adult elements such as poverty and emotional failings laced with self-effacing humor. Below is a list of five children’s books that would also make a successful jump to film with a newfound adult perspective. Read more »

This is your brain on books.

Jane Austen’s Emma comes to the big screen…in Bollywood. I am very excited to see Emma and Mr. Knightley dance and sing. For reals.

O helo thar: a good old fashioned book burnin’ at a Baptist Church in North Carolina. Books to be burned include such “heretical works” as Rick Warren, Mother Theresa, and, uh, the Bible. Book burning: ur doin it rong.

Maurice Sendak says he does “not tolerate” the opinion that Where the Wild Things Are is too scary for children, and concerned parents should “go to hell.”

The question is asked, again: is Twitter ruining literacy? We say, again: nope.

Boys like zombies because they’re both “dumb, brutal, ugly, and mindlessly violent.” Girls like vampires because they’re a proxy for the gay men they secretly want to date. Okay.

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