LA-based global content studio Gunpowder & Sky (The Little Hours) has purchased the rights to author John David Anderson’s heartwarming youth novel Ms. Bixby’s Last Day (pictured), and will adapt the book into a feature film with partner Walden Media (Chronicles of Narnia franchise, Bridge to Terabithia).

A screenplay by writing team Linsey Stewart and Dane Clark (I Put A Hit On You, Mr. D) will center around a trio of students who hatch a plan to give their favorite teacher, Ms. Bixby, a day she deserves after she unexpectedly announces that she won’t be able to finish the school year due to illness.

Ms. Bixby’s Last Day is published by Walden Pond Press, Walden Media’s joint middle-grade imprint with HarperCollins Children’s Books. Walden Media is a subsidiary of the Anschutz Film Group.

The option comes after a print-based sales surge in children’s publishing in 2017. According to NPD Book, US kids print book sales have grown faster than the total print book market in recent years, with a compound annual growth rate of 5.3% since 2013 (compared to 2.8% in the overall print book market).