6 Books I Will Petition for to Get an Anime Adaptation
When I was younger, my dad, my brother and I used to watch a lot of anime together, which then translated to me reading mostly manga and playing JRPG games for a big part of my life. Then, the other day, while I was sitting on my bed binge-watching the Fruits Basket reboot and eating ice cream, I started thinking about books that would be perfect for an anime adaptation.
You didn’t ask, but you never do, so let me preach to you why I think these books should be adapted into animes.
Amelia Westlake Was Never Here by Erin Gough
I love myself some slice-of-life. There’s just something about seeing the daily lives of high schoolers in Japan that just made my teenage self [read: right now] want to wear a school uniform and eat bento box lunches. If you feel the same way, now think: going to school at an elite high school…in AUSTRALIA. Amelia Westlake channels all the elements of a good slice-of-life: school uniforms, enemies-to-lovers, and a good scheme to take down injustice. Think Toradora! and Special A.
Light Years by Kass Morgan
Another popular subgenre of anime is sci-fi, and Light Years has that AND the school-life component that slice-of-life offers. It follows four students from different planets who enroll in the Quatra Fleet Academy: Vesper, Cormak, Arran, and Orelia. Vesper dreams of being a captain, Cormak is escaping his dead-end planet, Arran is looking for a place where he finally belongs, and Orelia is hiding a dark secret. When there’s a threat to their world, they team up to fight against it. Also, the sequel, Supernova, is coming out later this year so this can be another 300-episode series. There is just so much to unpack, just like Steins;Gate and The Girl Who Leapt Through Space.
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
This is an OBVIOUS answer. First of all, there is already fan-art that imagines the characters as anime characters. As the President of The Official Fan Club of Cardan’s Tail, I can only imagine how great it would be for that tail to be animated. But aside from that, the depiction of the faerie world would be so lush: the outfits, the hairstyles, the FOOD, the setting—all of it. For fans of Fairy Tail and Kingdom, the geopolitical setting of Elfhame is sure to tie it all together and package it into the 300-episode series we all deserve.
The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee
Don’t get me started on The Thousandth Floor (okay, you didn’t get me started, but I definitely got myself started). All the books in the trilogy had me enraptured…but it isn’t a surprise since my literary obsession is books about extravagantly rich people who live ridiculous lives. While this could make a great TV series since it’s been pitched as a futuristic Gossip Girl, the technology, the parties, and the grandeur of a thousand-floor tower would be captured so well in an anime. No wonder I really enjoyed Ouran High School Host Club and Fruits Basket.
Dear Evan Hansen: The Novel by Val Emmich, Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul
Is it me, or is there always a super angsty male MC in every anime? They give off major sadboi vibes, but then find themselves throughout the story by falling in love and finding a new group of friends while retaining the sadboi persona. This is the exact description of Evan Hansen, a high school senior with social anxiety who is put under the spotlight when a letter addressed to him is found in the hands of Connor Murphy, a classmate who died by suicide. Evan Hansen gives off channels the sadboi spirits of Hachiman from My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU and Arata from ReLIFE.
The Hearts We Sold by Emily Lloyd-Jones
We all know how I feel about this book. I love it. I love it so much. I would die for Emily and Dee and James Lancer, and honestly, the Daemon. It’s set in a world where demons exist, and the demons are there to make deals: one human body part in exchange for one wish come true. Dee trades her heart for boarding school tuition, and she meets a group of fellow “heartless” where they must fight against an otherworldly threat. If you like The Devil Is A Part-Timer or Blood Lad, then let’s petition for The Hearts We Sold to become an anime.