'13 Reasons Why,' 'Wicked,' 'Ready Player One' are inspired by books pulled from libraries

Of the books that have been banned or removed from school library shelves in Florida, a surprising number have been made into TV shows, bingewatching series or movies.

In September 2023, the Florida Department of Education released a hefty list of books removed from school library shelves last year. In Florida, there were 386 book removals from 1,218 total objections last year, according to the Tallahassee Democrat. Clay County had the most book removals with 177, followed by Martin County with 98 and Manatee County with 25 books removed, the Democrat reported.

Sometimes, even the authors voiced their opinions about book removals in Florida schools.

When bestselling author James Patterson learned his "Maximum Ride" series was pulled from Martin County school libraries in the spring, he responded in a USA TODAY story: "If you are going to ban this book, then no kids under 12 should go to any Marvel movies." Patterson lives in Palm Beach County and owns a home in Martin County.

Judy Blume, a legendary author in the young adult genre who lives in Key West, Florida, discussed book bans and removals in her “Judy Blume Forever” documentary on Amazon. Blume’s bestseller “Forever” was pulled from Martin County library shelves. “I was accused of all kinds of evil-doing,” Blume says in the 2023 documentary. “Once, because I am a supporter of Planned Parenthood, I got something like 700 death threats in a day. We took that very seriously.”

Interestingly, soon after the Judy Blume documentary was available for streaming on Amazon, the live-action film based on the author’s book, “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret,” made its debut on the big screen in April 2023. The film stars Rachel McAdams (“Mean Girls,” “The Notebook,” “Wedding Crashers”) and Abby Ryder Fortson (Marvel’s “Ant-Man” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp”).

On Nov. 6, 2023, actor Steve Martin ("Only Murders in the Building," "SNL," the "Father of the Bride" films)  went viral for this post to his 3.2 million followers on Facebook: "So proud to have my book Shopgirl banned in Collier County, Florida! Now people who want to read it will have to buy a copy!" The "Bright Star" creator included a link to purchase his book. Several comments responded about the movie of the same name.

Check this out: Steve Martin calls out Florida county on Facebook, Instagram after 'Shopgirl' book removal

Here’s a list of TV shows, series or movies that are based on books removed from school library shelves in Florida.

'Thirteen Reasons Why' on Netflix

Ten years after Jay Asher's novel "Thirteen Reasons Why" attracted national attention for its explicit content about suicide and sexual assault, the book became a bingewatching series on Netflix in 2017 − and a social media phenomenon.

The book and series are about teenager Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford in the series) who dies by suicide and leaves behind tapes for the people she says are the “reasons” she did it. Katherine Langford stars as Hannah with Dylan Minnette (Marvel’s “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”) as Clay Jensen. The show, which features trigger warnings and contact info for suicide support, aired for four seasons.

Why? Is '13 Reasons Why' more controversial than other depictions of suicide?

How a show helped a book: Netflix series made '13 Reasons Why' a No. 1 USA TODAY best seller

'Handmaid's Tale' on Hulu

Based on the 1985 bestselling novel by Margaret Atwood, “The Handmaid’s Tale” is an award-winning sci-fi series on Hulu starring Elisabeth Moss of “Mad Men” fame, Alexis Bledel of “Gilmore Girls” and Yvonne Strahovksi. According to its IMDB bio page, "'The Handmaid's Tale" is set in a dystopian future where a woman is forced to live as a concubine under a fundamentalist theocratic dictatorship. The TV series, on-air since 2017, has a TV-MA rating, and season six (which will be its last) is in production.

In a 2017 USA TODAY story, "Handmaid's Tale" star and author Elisabeth Moss and Margaret Atwood, respectively, say, yes, do watch "Handmaid's Tale," but take it slow.

'The Hate U Give' movie

A year after Angie Thomas' novel made its debut, “The Hate U Give” premiered in theaters in 2018. The big screen adaptation stars Amandla Stenberg ("The Hunger Games"), Regina Hall ("Girls Trip" and the "Scary Movie" movies) and Anthony Mackie (Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”). From its IMDB page, in "The Hate U Give," Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Now, facing pressure from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and stand up for what's right.

'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' movie

“The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” starring Logan Lerman (“Percy Jackson” films), Emma Watson (Harry Potter films) and Ezra Miller, star of DC’s big screen adaptation “The Flash,” was released in 2012, thirteen years after the novel was published in 1999.

“Perks” follows Lerman’s character, Charlie, who suffers from depression, as he navigates freshman year in high school. The film features drug and alcohol use and the topic of sexual abuse. The book’s author, Stephen Chbosky, also wrote the movie’s screenplay and directed the critically acclaimed film.

'Speak' movie

“Speak” starring Kristen Stewart (“Twilight” movies) and then-boyfriend Michael Angarano (“Sky High” and “This is Us”) starred in the 2004 movie about a teenage girl who refuses to speak after a high school party gone awry. Stewart’s character was sexually assaulted and purposely stays mute to cope with the trauma of the assault and the reactions from her former friends and mom.

'The Lovely Bones' movie

“The Lovely Bones” 2009 film starring Saoirse Ronan (Stephenie Meyer’s “The Host,” “Atonement”), Mark Wahlberg (“The Fighter,” “Instant Family”) and Stanley Tucci (“The Devil Wears Prada”) is based on the 2002 novel of the same name by Alice Seybold. The movie plot follows Ronan’s character, a young girl who is sexually assaulted and murdered and watches from the “In-Between” world that is neither heaven nor Earth as her family seeks vengeance while dealing with grief.

'Go Ask Alice' TV movie

Written in a diary-like form, “Go Ask Alice” was originally published anonymously in 1971, though Beatrice Sparks was eventually credited as the author. Two years later, in 1973 a film adaptation starred Jamie Smith-Jackson and William Shatner (“Star Trek,” “Boston Legal”). The book and TV movie cover Alice’s life with drugs at age 15.

'Wicked' on Broadway

“Wicked,” the beloved Broadway musical that is being made into a live-action film, is based on “Wicked: Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.” The iconic Broadway show with Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenowith, now starring Ariana Grande, Dove Cameron (Disney Channel) and Jonathan Bailey ("Bridgerton"), tells the story of the witches of Oz in a film that hits theaters Thanksgiving 2024. Grande plays Glinda the Good Witch with Cynthia Erick as Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West.

'I'm crying real tears.' See Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo's 'Wicked' transformation photos

Green and pink! 'Wicked' dazzles with first footage, teases Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo's 'Defying Gravity'

'The Kite Runner' movie

Author Khaled Hosseini published “The Kite Runner” in 2003, and in 2007 a PG-13 film of the same name was released. The story details friendship, betrayal, sexual assault, guilt and redemption. Spoiler alert: The author has a cameo in the film.

'My Sister's Keeper' movie

“My Sister’s Keeper” by Jodi Picoult was published in 2004, and in 2009 a PG-13 drama of the same name was released starring Abigail Breslin (“Definitely Maybe,” “Little Miss Sunshine”), Cameron Diaz (“My Best Friend’s Wedding,” “The Other Woman”), Jason Patric and Alec Baldwin (“30 Rock”). In the film, Breslin’s young character is a longtime donor to her older sister, who has a form of leukemia. She eventually files to sue her parents for medical emancipation.

'Me and Earl and the Dying Girl' movie

“Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” is a 2016 PG-13 film starring Olivia Cooke, RJ Cyler as Earl and Thomas Mann. Nick Offerman (“Parks and Rec”), Connie Britton (“Friday Night Lights” and “Nashville”) and Jon Bernthal (“Punisher” and “Daredevil”) co-star in the movie that’s based on the 2012 book of the same name. The plot focuses on high school students Greg and Earl and their friend Rachel, who has a form of leukemia. Greg and Earl make documentary-like films together and feature Rachel as a subject.

'The Diary of Anne Frank' movie

"The Diary of Anne Frank" was made into a biographical film in 1959. Like the book, which was posthumously published, "Diary of Anne Frank" covers a young Jewish girl's life in hiding during the Holocaust and World War II. An illustrated adaptation of "The Diary of Anne Frank" was removed from library shelves at one Indian River County school after a parent group complained the book minimalizes the Holocaust and shows the young girl's thoughts about other female bodies, according to TCPalm. "The Diary of Anne Frank," in its original version, remained on the shelves of middle school libraries in Indian River County, TCPalm reported.

‘Ready Player One’ movie

In 2011, Ernest Cline published his science-fiction novel “Ready Player One.” In 2018, Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg released his cinematic vision of Cline’s fantasy video game novel. Starring Tye Sheridan (Cyclops in “X-Men”), Ben Mendelsohn (“Captain Marvel” and Marvel’s “Secret Invasion”) and Olivia Cooke (“Me and Earl and the Dying Girl”), “Ready Player One” became a blockbuster hit. Spielberg dropped many pop culture Easter eggs in the film about living in virtual reality. Cline also is credited with co-writing the screenplay.

Check these out? These 5 books banned from Florida school shelves might surprise you

Contributing: Ana Goñi-Lessan, Steven Walker, Tallahassee Democrat, Colleen Wixon, TCPalm

Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: List of books pulled from Florida libraries made into movies, TV shows