Apr 02 2008

Judging Books by Their Titles

Books & Writing 7 Comments

I don’t care what the old adage says. I judge books by their covers. The only times I buy books whose covers don’t tickle my fancy are when they have been recommended by someone with whom I share similar tastes in books (tastes that tend toward the off-beat and the downright weird).

But more importantly, I judge books by their titles. What are titles for if not for grabbing potential readers by the collar and screaming, “READ ME!”?

In my case, the likelihood of my buying a book is directly proportional to the strangeness of its title. If book titles were people, I would be most effectively grabbed by that freak skulking at the back of the classroom or that woman dressed like Helena Bonham Carter on drugs.

See below the titles of the last five books I’ve enjoyed:

So now I ask you, are there any strangely titled books that you could recommend to me? I’ve just got back in the swing of reading, and I want to keep my momentum.

I predict a book shopping spree in my very near future.

7 Comments

  1. Amber 04.02.08 #

    I go by the synopsis. Does this make me mad or just sensible? ;)

  2. kits 04.02.08 #

    I remember reading your blogs before pa :) way back! :) and i found you again thru someone’s site! :D

    wala lang, natuwa lang ako! hehehe! :D where in singapore are you working?

  3. Aggie 04.05.08 #

    hey!! Personally, I like covers, too… but I never buy books nowadays unless I need them. So it really depends on what I’m feeling at the moment. :D

    Some interesting titles I heard about lately (have no idea what these books are about, though):
    Eats Shoots and Leaves (Ito ba ay ‘kumain, bumaril, tapos umalis?’ Or ‘kumakain ng shoots at dahon’? Cute, isn’t it?)
    The Monk who Sold his Ferrari

  4. Feah 04.06.08 #

    I’m afraid I can’t really think of any books with weird titles for you :( I haven’t been reading as much as I would like to lately, and when I was last on a reading spur it was because I wanted to read all the classics :P That said, I’m saving “War and Peace” for… well, la la la, someday. I think.

    I think I too judge books by their covers. I don’t know if I would judge one by it’s title, unless the title was signifigantly lame or cheesy. Then I would probably steer away from it, and look for something more interesting. But I think covers are definitely meant to draw people in, and unless there’s that visual aspect of it to get your attention (the title can make up for that of course), then I think it’s hard to get really interested in a book you’ve never heard of before, with a plain cover. If the book has been recommended to me however, then I couldn’t care less what it looks like :P

    Good luck with finding something :)

  5. James 04.10.08 #

    Hi! I just got to your site through my friend’s link list and I found it cool, so I look around often. :D

    Anyway, here are some interesting books I’ve already read, (and they have one-word titles):

    Thr3e (by Ted Dekker)
    - fiction, and it’s really spelled with a number 3

    Next (by Michael Crichton)
    - fiction, and same author of Jurassic Park

    iCon (by Jeffrey Young and William Simon)
    - nonfiction about Steve Jobs, the Apple guy

  6. Rose 04.12.08 #

    I’ve read those! Good taste :)

    No suggestions for you, though. I’m afraid of suggesting books to people :P

  7. Angel 04.29.08 #

    I’ve never read this book before but I saw it on my sister’s collections - “On the Bright Side, I’m Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God”. Nice huh?!

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