National Library Week 2026

In honor of National Library Week, we wanted to highlight amazing films based on amazing books. Literature has been a major inspiration for film; the 1899 silent film Cinderella, directed by Georges Méliès, is widely considered the first book-to-film adaptation. 

And that tradition is very much alive today. Some of the biggest films in recent memory have come straight from the pages of a book. Project Hail Mary, based on Andy Weir's beloved sci-fi novel, stars Ryan Gosling in a beautiful survival story. Hamnet, adapted from Maggie O'Farrell's acclaimed novel, turns a quiet literary meditation on grief and family into a powerful historical drama. Emerald Fennell took on Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights with a bold new vision, and Denis Villeneuve's Dune films have reminded everyone just how epic a literary adaptation can feel. Dune: Part Three is arriving in December 2026. 

Book-to-film adaptations are exciting because a novel can let us sit inside a character’s thoughts, while a film can make a moment visual and visceral. The best adaptations do not simply copy what is on the page. They translate it. They find the images, performances, and atmosphere that make a story feel brand new, even for people who already know how it ends.

Here are a few book-to-film adaptations we have available on TheArchive: 

Freefall: Flight 174 , Freefall: From 41,000 Feet to Zero – A True Story by William Hoffer and Marilyn Mona Hoffer, tells the astonishing true story of a Canada World Airways Boeing 767 that runs out of fuel mid-flight due to a miscalculation. What begins as a routine trip from Montreal to Edmonton quickly becomes a terrifying fight for survival, as Captain Bob Pearson and First Officer Maurice Quintal must find a way to land a plane falling from the sky with roughly 60 passengers on board. It is the kind of story that almost feels too unbelievable to be real, which is exactly why it works so well on screen. 

The Secret Path (Also known as Chasing Secrets), based on the novel The Secret Path by Karen Autio, follows a teenage girl who is sent to stay with relatives in a quiet town, only to discover lingering mysteries tied to her late mother’s past. As she begins to uncover clues about a hidden inheritance and long-buried family secrets, she finds herself drawn into a deeper story of loss, identity, and belonging.

This National Library Week, it is worth celebrating all the places stories live: on shelves, on screens, and in real events and stories. Libraries remind us that stories are meant to be discovered, shared, and re-formatted. 

Looking for even more ways to watch and enjoy excellent movies & TV series?!? Head on over to YouTube and subscribe to Grapevine Documentaries, Multicom Entertainment, and TheArchive. These channels are dedicated to aficionados and lovers of cinema. You’ll find rare, retro, and restored films and TV, ranging from indies and series to Oscar-winning docs, unearthed MOWs, a killer horror library, and MORE!  

TheArchive channel is dedicated to aficionados and lovers of story, craft, and silver screen fun – streaming rare, retro, and restored films and classic TV. From indies and series to Oscar-winning documentaries, unearthed MOWs, and a killer horror library, TheArchive delivers forgotten, never-before-seen gems for free and many in 4K. Marilyn, Karloff, and Orson Welles stream alongside Reese, Keanu, and Samuel L. Jackson. Find true stories of Queen, Hendrix, and Sinatra, an LGBTQ library, MLK bios, and world history docs. TheArchive has the movies and shows you either saw, should’ve seen, or should be watching now!