Can you sell movie rights to a children's picture book?

If you're Judi Barrett, you can. Publisher's Weekly online reports, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett, illustrated by Ron Barrett (Atheneum, 1978) has been optioned for development as a feature film by Sony Picture Animation. The movie's plot will center around a scientist who tries to solve world hunger only to see things go awry as food falls from the sky."

My favorite book of theirs is Benjamin's 365 Birthdays. It is the sweetest book with a lesson that resonates for adults as well as children. It's been out of print for at least 10 years, which proves there is no justice in the world. Maybe the movie deal is karma payback.