March Movie Madness

Picture by Andrea Cox

While other folks are hosting college basketball watch parties for March Madness, I'll be hosting a new reading challenge here on Writing to Inspire.

In January, we read books from our ever-growing to-be-read piles.

For February's reading challenge, we read books that were all about love.

This month, I thought we'd have a bit of fun. There will be two phases to this challenge. The second one is optional.

Phase One: Books

Read books that have been made into movies.

There are so many of these, both in the general and Christian markets. I can hardly wait to see which ones you'll read this month!

I have a long list of made-into-movies books, but since I'm catching up on a couple of reading challenges (from a group on Goodreads) that are wrapping up soon, I might only get to one or two.

Here are the ones I'm considering:

90 Minutes in Heaven by Don Piper

I've already seen the movie a couple of times, and I'd like to read the author's account of his experience before watching it again. Nonfiction books normally take me longer to read than fiction ones, so this will be one of only a couple of true stories that I read in March.

The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum

This is a general market story I've already read, but it's been years and I'm due for a rereading. This time, though, I think I'll listen to the audio version. The movie series is one of my favorites in the action/thriller genre, and it will be wonderful to rewatch them after having read the books. I know the books and movies are vastly different, since the books are set in the Cold War era and the books are set in modern times, but they're each entertaining in their own ways.

N or M? by Agatha Christie

A year or so ago, I saw a miniseries on PBS that featured episodes called "N or M?" and were based on Agatha Christie's book by that same title. The miniseries was called Partners in Crime and was about a crime-solving married couple who often found themselves in tight spots before solving the case. It's on my wish list, because I would love to watch that show again soon. In the meantime, I'll be giving the audio version of the book a try.

Phase Two: Movies

Watch the movie after reading the book.

Share how the book and movie compare to one another

or which one you enjoyed better.

In recent years, I've learned that reading the book before seeing the movie is something I really enjoy doing. Therefore, I thought this two-phase challenge might add a little fun to your month and perhaps even begin a new trend for you.

Even if you've seen the movie before reading the book, doing both can still be lots of fun. Here are some inspired-by-a-book movies that I enjoyed so much that I now want to read the books:

I'm eager to see which books and movies you choose to read and watch this month. Please share when you've finished them and how you liked them in the comments.

Which books that were later turned into movies have you already read?

Which movies based on books have you enjoyed?

Which ones are you looking forward to?

Join the conversation!

I love hearing from you.

February was All About Love. Remember to put in your final romance books for that month's challenge.