45 Book Adaptations, One Big Scandal and a Forgotten Thriller
Also, this week's biggest cultural stories, two podcast episodes, and a question every film lover should answer
From the Editor
For those of us begrudgingly heading back into the office after a much deserved holiday, I have good news. There’s a lot of exciting things happening in the culture before 2026 comes to an end.
Chiefly, I want to direct you to ultimate book-to-screen adaptation I have been working on over the last two weeks (see below). I was thrilled to see how many good movies and shows we have to look forward to before the end of the year. I thought we peaked with The Odyssey, but no, there’s still Dune 3, Sense and Sensibility, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, and so many more adaptions to look forward to.
On this week’s episode of The Voice Note I broke down five of the biggest stories dominating culture this week. One of them was of course the announcement that Valerie Hillings has been appointed as the inaugural director of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi which will be opening on December 11. Another cultural activity to look forward to before year’s end!
I was in Abu Dhabi a week ago and the Frank Gehry designed museum already looks incredible from the outside, so one can only image how beautiful the structure, and the art, will be inside. I can’t wait to set foot in there and even more excited to bring you all along for the ride.
From a scandal in the book film world that I cover in The Voice Note this week, to re-reading this week’s recommendation, and thinking about films that I don’t think enough people know about.
So whether you’re more of a reader, writer, or prefer watching your stories on the screen, I have something that should keep you scrolling.
As usual I love hearing from all of you. I was delighted to get a message from a reader last week who told me that listening to my review and recap of the Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender while she was stuck in traffic inspired her to watch the original series with her son!
This is one of the reasons I do what I do, so please never hesitate to get in touch and say hello.
Enjoy,
Maan Jalal
This Week on The Culturelist…
45 Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations for 2026 and Beyond
This is your ultimate list, a full guide to every single novel (if I missed one, do tell me) that’s being adapted for the screen.
The Exhibition List: From Arab Divas to the History of Storytelling in India
One thing connects this week’s exhibitions from around the worlds - iconic. While completely overused in the culture today, iconic is a pertinent concept here. From iconic artists grappling with larger than life ideas and themes, to iconic histories weaving through the stories of great women and the idea of storytelling itself.
Listen on The Culturelist…
The Culturelist Recommends…
I’ve spoken about Tina Brown’s brilliant before. I come back to it when I need so inspiration, opening at random and seeing what was going on in the word of glamorous magazine publishing in the 1980s and early 90s.
Even if you aren’t into publishing and media, its a great story about a young woman in taking on New York and making her mark in very male dominated work culture.
Buy this book here
This Week’s Quote…
A master of crime fiction, P.D. James’ birthday was this week. Cover her Face, the first in the Adam Dalgliesh detective series, is an incredible novel, smart, enticing, perfect with ever re-read.
I recently read her Ten Rules for Writing Fiction from The Guardian’s series for writers and I feel that her fifth rule could also apply to those who don’t write.
Open your mind to new experiences, particularly to the study of other people. Nothing that happens to a writer – however happy, however tragic – is ever wasted.
This Week’s Question…
Over the last week I watched three great action packed stories. I Will Find You on Netflix, which reminded me of Mel Gibson’s 1996 film Ransom, that I then rewatched, which reminded me of one of the best action packed thrillers of all time - The Fugitive which was released in 1993 starring Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones. What a film!
I was very surprised when I shared this on my instagram how many people hadn’t seen the film and some hadn’t even heard of it. So I pose this question to you:
Which film do you love that you are surprised not enough people have seen or know about?
As always, thank you for you subscription to The Culturelist.
See you next week.
Maan Jalal