Book Reviews (Commonwealth Union) With the development of films as a form of entertainment, the past few decades have seen a vast number of novels being brought to life on the big screen. Even though filmmakers are sometimes quite notorious for mixing up the content of novels during the production process, the practice of adapting has made various stories more available to those who are not as fond of going through a few hundred pages. Nevertheless, adaptations have also become popular even among avid readers as they bring their imagination to life, making for a delightful interpretation of the plotlines and characters. Here are 10 novels with the highest number of adaptations made throughout the years.
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Penned by Charlotte Brontë under her pseudonym “Currer Bell”, Jane Eyre is the story of an orphan by the same name who ends up as a governess to the daughter of a wealthy man, Mr. Rochester. As she and Mr. Rochester fall in love and plan to get married, she finds out that he is already married and is hiding her mentally ill first wife in the mysterious attic. The plot of the novel heavily focuses on feminism, classism, and deception. The novel has had 40 adaptations over the years, including the 1943 film starring Joan Fontaine and Orson Wells and the more recent 2011 film, which featured Mia Wasikowska along with Michael Fassbender.
- Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Written after Dostoevsky’s exile in Siberia, the novel is about a poor student residing in St. Petersburg who kills a pawnbroker and steals her valuables. Deciding to do good when he soon becomes rich to avoid guilt, the novel portrays the impending paranoia and regret that haunt him. The psychological and existentialist nature of the novel makes for fascinating content, so it’s no surprise that it has had around 39 film adaptations.
- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
The novel narrates the tale of a budding musketeer who aspires to serve his monarch and forges friendships with three of the most formidable musketeers to secure his position. With a long history, this novel has inspired 45 film adaptations through the years.
- A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens unsurprisingly wrote the novel, widely accepted as one of the most famous Christmas stories of all time. With a rather dark twist, the plot follows Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly banker who is known for being stingy. Scrooge is visited by his deceased business partner and three ghosts who take him to visit Christmases of his past, present, and future, changing him from a heartless penny-pincher into a kind philanthropist. During the Christmas season, numerous performances of the story take place, both on the big screen and onstage. There are around 48 adaptations of this novel, including one based on Barbie and another on Donald Duck.
- Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Initially published part by part in a children’s magazine titled Treasure Island, or the Mutiny of the Hispaniola, the story revolves around Jim Hawkins, who joins some buccaneers trying to find an abandoned treasure trove. Intertwining deep themes like the human desire for wealth and the dangerous nature of immoral deeds with a thrilling pirate adventure, this novel has had around 37 adaptations.
- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Portraying Edmond Dumas, a skilled sailor who is incarcerated for allegedly aiding the exiled Napoleon Bonaparte, the novel is a gripping story of how he escapes a prison fortress surrounded by the sea, finds a treasure, and adopts a persona as the Count of Monte Cristo to get revenge. With such an iconic protagonist, this novel has around 31 film adaptations, including a recent one that stars Henry Cavill.
- Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll
This iconic novel is about a dreamland with surreal happenings and is a favorite among people of all ages, whether they be kids or adults well into their latter years. The story holds many fascinating incidents, with Alice going down a rabbit hole, food that makes you change in size, a Cheshire Cat, and a Mad Hatter. The nonsensical plotlines made way for 49 visually spectacular adaptations, with a recent one starring Mia Wasikowska, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, and Johnny Depp, which is widely regarded as one of the best fantasy adaptations made.
- Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Tarzan is most famous for its Disney animation. The story follows a viscount and his wife getting stranded during an expedition to Africa, where she gives birth to a son before they die shortly after. An Ape widow adopts the baby and raises him until his discovery decades later. The novel has inspired around 52 adaptations, including the Disney animation and the movie starring Alexander Skarsgård.
- Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelly
Highly regarded as one of the first science fiction novels written, this particular novel is one of her most famous, despite being written when she was 18. The novel follows Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a creature from corpse parts, and it is a gothic horror in which the monster kills him before taking its own life. Even though the story has been the subject of attention many times throughout the years, the 69 adaptations that have been made are proof that the novel will always remain a timeless one.
- Dracula, by Bram Stoker
This novel, which revolves around a solicitor who discovers a vampire living as a Transylvanian nobleman, is the origin of all the many vampire stories that thrive in modern times. The vampire, Count Dracula, flees to an English seaside town where his havoc garners the attention of a vampire hunter, Abraham Van Helsing. This timeless classic has inspired a grand total of 91 adaptations.
