2012 was a great year personally. I hit a weight loss goal after being diagnosed with a chronic disease that lowers metabolism. I was successful at work and have achieved many of my professional goals for the year. And my boyfriend and I just celebrated 7 years together. Not to mention I launched www.thehippiebookworm.com in early February.
Luckily for us book readers, Literature had a great year as well – particularly in relation to bringing readers to books through film. Even I found a new author – Kathryn Stockett – after watching the movie The Help when it came out On Demand on my cable service.
Below we’ll look at 12 major events in Literature this year. Let me know in the comments section if I missed any.
In February 2012 a Congolese national studying in Brussels was introduced to the world of Tintin comic books. He was not impressed with what he found after reading the book Tintin in the Congo. Despite that he lost his Belgian lawsuit to ban the book from distribution, many book sellers across Europe took his claim seriously and removed the book from the children’s section and placed in adult literature instead. He may have lost, but he opened some eyes to topic of racism in literature.
In early March Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax was released in theatres teaching children the importance of conservation and celebrating a story that is just as relevant now as when it was first published.
Almost into April, Suzanne Collins’ creation, The Hunger Games, came to life and brought even more recognition to her already-popular Hunger Games Trilogy. Fans were not disappointed as they watched Peta and Katnis battle it out to the end. And no one was more pleasantly surprised by Jennifer Lawrence’s portrayal of Katniss than me.
In 2012 Oregon State University created the Stone Award for lifetime achievement in Literature. With more than 50 novels and numerous poems, short stories and essays under her belt, author Joyce Carol Oates became the inaugural recipient on May 10, 2012.
July was a great month filled with anticipation for the 2012 Summer Olympics to be held in London. In the opening ceremony the U.K. celebrated everything from the industrial revolution to universal healthcare to children’s literature that has spanned the test of time.
In September author J.K. Rowling had loyal readers scratching their heads when she released her first piece of adult fiction, The Casual Vacancy, which awarded her a new fan base while Harry Potter followers were left pining for Hogwarts.
We’ve been hearing James Patterson threaten to kill of Alex Cross for years. But who would have seen Tyler Perry filling the detective’s shoes when at last loyal readers were rewarded with a film version of Merry Christmas Alex Cross in October?
Kids all over the U.S. are still reading To Kill a Mockingbird in their English class (if it hasn’t been banned for displaying racial tension), but it was November 2012 that the movie version of the book celebrated 50 years.
Twilight fans formed lines around the block when the last installment of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Saga, Break Dawn Part 2, was released in November 2012. Bonus for us, we get to see Alice’s vision of the battle outcome and the film was actually produced by Meyer herself.
Tolkein fans were once again surprised when the children’s story, The Hobbit, was released on film. Directed by Peter Jackson, who did The Lord of the Rings, wanted this 3-part film excursion to take a more whimsical and light approach to the world of Middle Earth.
The Brothers Grimm celebrated their 200th anniversary of the first publication of Grimm’s Fairytales. Jacob and Wilhelm spent over 50 years compiling the stories of folklore and fable before the book was completed.
Did I miss something that happened this year you think should be mentioned? Leave me a comment below.
