The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, was published in September of 2008. Its main character, Katniss Everdeen, lives in a post-apocalyptic world that is in ruins-well, everywhere except the capital. The capital selects 24 teens (12 boys and 12 girls) as district tributes to battle to the death and broadcasts it live for the capital and to the 12 districts of Panem. Katniss volunteers as tribute to keep her younger sister, who is originally selected, from braving the "games". This story follows both Katniss and her partner tribute Peeta as they try to survive the games and ultimately start something much bigger.
With its release, The Hunger Games saw huge success selling over 675 million copies. What was to follow was two more books (making the series an official trilogy) and four blockbuster movies. This story was a hit in the early 2010s and continues to capture young adults' attention even today. With the recent release of a prequel in 2020 and a new movie release in 2023, the series has sparked interest with an entirely new audience. The Hunger Games seems to be continuing to grow as a franchise with a new book ( that is already set to become a movie as well) set to release in March 2025.
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, by Holly Jackson, was published in 2019, followed by two more books and a novella in the series published in 2020, 2021, and 2022. This series follows Pippa or Pip, a teenage girl trying to solve a murder that occurred in her town as part of her end of year project. While investigating, Pippa meets Ravi, the little brother of the accused murderer. They soon work together to find the killer and clear Ravi's brother's name. Soon after its release, AGGGTM became a heavily talked about book on BookTok, a subsection of TikTok where creators can share and promote their favorite reads to other people on the platform. After the success on BookTok and multiple other social media platforms, AGGGTM was adapted into a six-part television series created by the BBC and is available to watch on Netflix.
To All the Boys I've Loved Before
To All the Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han, was published in 2014, followed shortly by two more in the series released in 2015 and 2017. The series follows Laura Jean as she explores her love life. Laura Jean writes five love letters to all the boys she has ever loved, but these letters were never seen by anyone else but her until one day, when they get mailed out to all the boys they are addressed to. This leads the main character to begin a fake relationship with one of the recipients. Things become a bit messy and the love letters lead to Laura Jean finding love outside of her private love letters.
In 2018, shortly after the last of the series was published, Netflix released a movie based on the first book. The first movie became one of Netflix's most-viewed original films on their platform and gained critical acclaim. Due to its success, Netflix released two more movies based on the sequels and a television series called XO, Kitty which follows Laura Jean's younger sister as she attends the same boarding school her late mother attended.
The Summer I Turned Pretty
Published by Simon & Schuster in 2009, The Summer I Turned Pretty, by Jenny Han, had a resurgence of popularity due to TikTok. The series captured audiences new and old through Booktok and the success of the film series To All The Boys I've Loved Before. Much like Han's previous book, The Summer I Turned Pretty had two more books that follow in the series that were published in 2010 and 2011. The first book follows Belly as she navigates through the summer with Jeremiah and Conrad, who she has known forever. Almost everything seems to change that summer for Belly.
In 2022, Amazon Prime created a series that follows the story of the books and Belly through the summer that changed everything. The show, much like the book, gained a ton of popularity through social media. This series not only increased the number of people subscribed to Amazon Prime, but also it was the most-completed series on the platform in 2023.
Heartstopper
Heartstopper was created in 2016 as a web comic that was posted by its author, Alice Oseman, on Tumblr and Tapas. This original posting was followed by the web comic being published on WebToon. The digital publication gained over 124 millions views and was published as a graphic novel in 2019 by Hachette Children’s Group. This graphic novel series has grown in popularity and has sold over one million copies worldwide. Heartstopper follows two boys, Nick and Charlie, as they meet each other in school and quickly become friends and fall in love. The series has five volumes to date, as well as a novella called This Winter.
In 2022, Netflix developed a television series based on the graphic novels. The television series follows the books pretty closely and is able to involve its side characters to explore the topics of friendship and coming-of-age.
Sources:
Comments