By Rosalind Russell – A former Espanola High School student who now works for the federal government in Ottawa has penned some books in her spare time and one of them is now being turned into a movie.
Amy Lea’s book ‘Woke Up Like This’, a teen romantic comedy, was selected as one of CBC’s best books for Canadian children and teens in 2023 and made the CBC Canada Reads Longlist for 2024, one of only 15 books to receive the honour.
She says the book focuses on its 17-year-old heroine Charlotte Wu who must work with her arch-nemesis on making the right life choices.
Lea says Amazon Studios has purchased the film option and the book has also been featured on The Today Show, People Magazine, and Entertainment Weekly.
She adds once filming is finished, Amazon will be releasing it on its site, Prime Video.
Lea has completed is a trilogy; ‘Set on You’, published in 2022, and ‘Exes & O’s’, which came out in October 2023 by Penguin Random House, with the final installment, ‘The Catch,’ being released just before Valentine’s Day.
Photo: A federal government worker formerly from Espanola has been writing books in her spare time. One of those has led to a movie deal. Photo provided.