Books are my favorite thing in the world. The idea that just reading some words on a page can magically transform you into a whole new world, and even a whole new person is wonderful to me. Television is also my favorite thing in the world. It is so mindless that you can quickly get swept up in all the drama of the shows, and then realize that you don't have that life, and you like yours so much more. The best thing about the love of books and television is that some shows were books once, and they made themselves into high-ranking shows that we know and love today. Here are four famous shows that were originally books and still made it into our hearts.
1. Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard
Already in its seventh season, this show is a big hit. You start with four teenage girls trying to find their way through high school, all while the murder of their friend Alison DiLaurentis is forever haunting them. Next thing you know the girls are getting text messages from "A," knowing who they are and all the secrets that they are keeping. The books do keep with the series for the most part regarding the main characters, but they do add more characters as time goes on.
2. Game of Thrones By George R. R. Martin
While I have never watched Game of Thrones (gasp!), I do know how big of a phenomenon it currently is. But did you know that they were books? If summer did not end this early, I would be up to my ears reading this series. The basic idea of this book is about these seven kingdoms fighting for their chance to rule the Iron Throne, while others are trying to gain their independence through it. There are currently five books out and six seasons of the show. Plus, the best part about reading the books is that you can figure out who dies before all the television watchers!
3. The 100 by Kass Morgan
If I did not have a mile long list of reading to do, I would be binge-watching The 100. When a nuclear Armageddon destroys the earth, the only people alive are those on the twelve international space stations. But with the fear of going back to earth three generations later, what they will find will not only shock them but may make them a little fearful of what is out there. In just three books, you can see what happens when Earth has been abandoned for many generations.
4. The Outlander
I look at this series and so desperately want to watch it. Unfortunately, it is on STARZ (and I only have HBO), so the books will have to do. The main character is a former combat nurse just coming back from the war in 1945. One day, she steps into this standing stone and suddenly becomes an "outlander", and now has to face the wrath of Scotland that is currently in a clan war. With nine books in the series, not having STARZ should make it easy enough to figure out what's currently going on.
Television is great thing. Not only can you knows what is going on in the world, but you can find shows about history, sports, and cooking everything you could ever think of. You can also do that with books. But with books, it is not the same thing over and over again, almost to the point of figuring out what is going to happen before the show has even started.
