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What is your favorite book title?

June 6, 2007 by Nathan Bransford 87 Comments

The great book title. Much like the yeti, it is a mystical creature that often eludes the hardiest of searches. Oftentimes it is mistakenly spotted in the woods, but let’s be honest: when you see Sasquatch, you know it’s Sasquatch. (Also a great title is hairy and best viewed on grainy video. Yay metaphors!)

I have seen books go through twenty tentative titles before a final title was finally chosen, and it’s often an agonizing choice. There’s a reason for that: a great title can really capture a reader’s attention and can separate a book from the pack. Although they’re great books that suceeded on their own merits, no doubt titles like HEARTBREAKING WORK OF STAGGERING GENIUS, SPECIAL TOPICS IN CALAMITY PHYSICS and THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST helped set those books apart.

So you tell me: you don’t have to have read the book or even liked it, but what is your favorite book title of all time? As always, you can only pick one. Why? Because I’m mean. (And it’s more fun that way.)

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Filed Under: Books Tagged With: book recommendations, You Tell Me

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dave says

    June 7, 2007 at 3:31 am

    I came to this late tonight –

    Favorite book title: “Are You Loathsome Tonight” by Poppy Z Brite.

    Favorite Movie title: “Sorority Babes at the Slime Ball Bowlerama”

    Reply
  2. Anonymous says

    June 7, 2007 at 3:35 am

    The Neverending Story or in the original German: Die Unendliche Geschichte (at least according to Wikipedia)

    Reply
  3. Nate says

    June 7, 2007 at 4:11 am

    ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST

    and

    THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS

    Reply
  4. reality says

    June 7, 2007 at 5:02 am

    The Winter Of Our Discontent…
    John Steinbeck.

    Not only does it have a good sound to it. It is relevant to the story.

    Reply
  5. Lisa says

    June 7, 2007 at 9:08 am

    EVEN COWGIRLS GET THE BLUES, always struck me as a memorable title. Based on the comments deleted, I have to believe someone must have come up with THE NO [expletive deleted]RULE: BUILDING A CIVILIZED WORKPLACE AND SURVIVING ONE THAT ISN’T. It’s non-fiction, but come on — it’s a catchy title.

    Reply
  6. Josephine Damian says

    June 7, 2007 at 12:17 pm

    “Because it is Bitter, and Because it is My Heart” by Joyce Carol Oates

    Invokes curiosity, emotion, and makes you want to read more.

    Reply
  7. writtenwyrdd says

    June 7, 2007 at 1:11 pm

    HOLLOW CHOCOLATE BUNNIES OF THE APOCOLYPSE by Christopher Moore. I didn’t know who he was at all, but that title caught my eye. I’ve been a fan of his writing since.

    Reply
  8. writtenwyrdd says

    June 7, 2007 at 1:13 pm

    Favorite movie title: CANNIBAL: THE MUSICAL. If you are into Troma films, this is the best one.

    Reply
  9. Janniel says

    June 7, 2007 at 2:37 pm

    The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things (Carolyn Mackler) has tickled my funny bone since I first heard it.

    Reply
  10. Rachel says

    June 7, 2007 at 3:14 pm

    I have to go with “THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER”

    The title still gives me chills long after I’ve forgotten major parts of the plot.

    Reply
  11. Anonymous says

    June 7, 2007 at 3:17 pm

    STEAL THIS BOOK.

    Reply
  12. Nocturnal Princess says

    June 7, 2007 at 3:38 pm

    A Darkness More Than Night by Michael Connelly. Chills run down my neck.

    Reply
  13. CMonster says

    June 7, 2007 at 3:48 pm

    Elsewhere by Will Shetterly.

    Followed by (or preceded by, depending on your mode of travel): The Hitchhiker’s Guide Trilogy.

    Reply
  14. dmh says

    June 7, 2007 at 5:08 pm

    Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy

    A Corner of the Universe

    The Slightly True Story of Cedar B. Hartley, Who Planned to Live an Unusual Life

    Reply
  15. takoda says

    June 7, 2007 at 10:29 pm

    The only two books I bought based on their titles were: FIRE IN THE EARTH and Dohttps://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=5334836757176538347&postID=6655639476037421689steyevsky’s THE IDIOT

    I loved Dean Koontz’ THE WATCHERS. Now I’m wondering if I have to buy I”D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU BUT THEN I”D HAVE TO KILL YOU

    Reply
  16. M.W. says

    June 8, 2007 at 2:15 pm

    Love in the Time of Cholera
    The Sound and the Fury
    The Red and the Black
    A Series of Unfortunate Events (okay, a series title, but still, awesome)
    War and Peace

    Oh, there is more…

    Reply
  17. sunjunkie says

    June 8, 2007 at 3:49 pm

    writtenwyrdd: According to amazon.com, the author of _Hollow Chocolate Bunnies…_ is Robert Rankin. Has Christopher Moore written under a pseudonym, or was that just a slip? I *adore* all things Christopher Moore, so if there’s more Moore hiding out there somewhere, do tell!

    Reply
  18. R.J. Anderson says

    June 8, 2007 at 4:16 pm

    My brother thinks In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead (James Lee Burke) is the best title ever. Me, I keep wanting to put “the” in between “with” and “Confederate”.

    But that also reminds me that I think Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is a fab title, even though I’ve only seen “Blade Runner” and never got around to reading Philip K. Dick’s original book.

    Obviously, long quirky titles that make you wonder what on earth the book could possibly be about (and yet give you just enough of a clue to be intriguing) are the big grabber for me.

    Reply
  19. Ben says

    June 8, 2007 at 5:07 pm

    Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds

    Reply
  20. Zen of Writing says

    June 8, 2007 at 10:35 pm

    Welcome to the Monkey House
    The Day of the Triffids
    The End of Mr Y
    Neuromancer
    The Brothers Karamazov (wouldn’t work as well as The Karamazov Brothers)
    Down and Out in Paris and London
    Hard Boiled Wonderland and The End of the World

    Reply
  21. Anonymous says

    June 8, 2007 at 10:36 pm

    Even Thai Girls Cry

    Reply
  22. lizz says

    June 9, 2007 at 12:49 am

    “The City in Which I Love You” Li-Young Lee

    Reply
  23. Anonymous says

    June 9, 2007 at 2:54 am

    Les Misérables. Very simple, very evocative.

    Reply
  24. dana p says

    June 9, 2007 at 3:24 am

    Ten Thousand Light Years From Home
    Bastard Out of Carolina
    I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
    Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
    Look Homeward, Angel
    Too Late the Phalarope
    Mothers and Other Monsters
    I Am a Camera
    The Sheep Look Up

    Reply
  25. Determinist says

    June 9, 2007 at 12:07 pm

    “The Secrets of Walking Erect”, it is the title to a book I’ve never written.

    I always loved the title and wanted to write it some day. Sort of an instruction manual about being human. The closest current thing to it isthe video “Dance Monkeys Dance” by Ernest Cline

    Reply
  26. Anonymous says

    June 9, 2007 at 3:03 pm

    Even though I’m not a big Salinger fan, and even though it’s a short story, I’m going to have to go with:
    A PERFECT DAY FOR BANANAFISH

    To Girl-in-boy-clothes:
    The word LOLITA became synonymous with a provocative young female only AFTER Nabokov had written it. So, at the time he titled his novel, it was merely a female given name. Guess you know your title has really succeeded when it passes into the common lingo.

    Reply
  27. Anonymous says

    June 9, 2007 at 3:20 pm

    M.W. : Faulkner stole the title THE SOUND AND THE FURY from Shakespeare. Although he was smart enough to steal only the very best, I don’t think he should get the credit for the brilliance of that title.

    Reply
  28. Colleen says

    June 10, 2007 at 12:42 pm

    The only book I can recall buying for its title alone was Fits Like a Rubber Dress by Roxane Ward.

    One of the most evocative titles has to be Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown. My heart breaks just reading the title.

    Reply
  29. Anonymous says

    June 11, 2007 at 4:58 am

    SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES is also from Shakespeare. (It’s in Macbeth, Act IV, I think.)

    I guess Shakespeare is just awesome. And apparently dreamy :).

    Reply
  30. Anonymous says

    June 11, 2007 at 3:35 pm

    And we can add INFINITE JEST to this list of titles lifted from the Bard.

    Reply
  31. Jennifer says

    June 12, 2007 at 3:20 am

    COMPLETE AND UTTER FAILURE by Neil Steinberg and I STILL MISS MY MAN BUT MY AIM IS GETTING BETTER by Sarah Shankman

    Reply
  32. Jennifer says

    June 12, 2007 at 3:24 am

    oops! (picked two; cannot follow directions; goes to the back of the line)

    Reply
  33. Tom Burchfield says

    June 12, 2007 at 8:31 pm

    Mine is:

    “All Heads Turn When the Hunt Goes By” by John Farris. Pretty good southern horror gothic novel, too.

    Reply
  34. Jenny says

    June 14, 2007 at 9:42 pm

    The Aforementioned Bimbos … is one of my favorite titles, as is the novella title “Pol Pot’s Beautiful Daughter” – and the story lives up to the strange name.

    Reply
  35. Graham says

    June 16, 2007 at 5:28 am

    Stupid White Men, by Michael Moore. A title that totally sums up the Bush administration.

    Reply
  36. Anonymous says

    June 16, 2007 at 9:19 pm

    I don’t think STUPID WHITE MEN does quite sum up the Bush administration…. You wouldn’t want to leave out a certain stupid black female, and a certain stupid Latino male, would you? In fact, the Bush administration has a pretty good record in terms of hiring stupid people of all sexes and ethnicities.

    Reply
  37. writtenwyrdd says

    July 25, 2007 at 6:38 pm

    “writtenwyrdd: According to amazon.com, the author of _Hollow Chocolate Bunnies…_ is Robert Rankin. Has Christopher Moore written under a pseudonym, or was that just a slip? I *adore* all things Christopher Moore, so if there’s more Moore hiding out there somewhere, do tell!”

    Yeah, I erred. BFD.

    Reply
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