So if we can’t judge books by their cover, what does that leave us with? The title?
I mean, this is great, in theory, when you’ve got gorgeous titles like the ones I featured last week in Extraordinary Titles That Demand Some Attention. But what about the rest of them?
Titles come in all different flavors:
✿ The really evocative title that draws you in (A Lush and Seething Hell || Teeth in the Mist)
✿ The one-word titular character/idea (Scythe || Kingsbane)
✿ The ones that hit the plot on the head (In the Hall with the Knife || Keeper of Bees)
✿ The enigmas that sneak up on you in one brilliant line of dialogue and make you squee because you finally understand the genius (Atlas Shrugged || A Thousand Perfect Notes)
But sometimes, just sometimes, there’s a title that does … well, nothing. Or not a whole lot. Why? Because it tells you nothing at all about the book or the focus or, even worse, what it seems to promise at first blush is a lie. Or, at the very least, an exaggerated truth.
Today’s Top Ten Tuesday is books I’d give different titles to. But I have a hard enough time naming my own work as it is, so we’ll leave this one to the professionals. Namely, anyone but me.
Instead, I thought it’d be fun to spin it and talk about books whose titles felt like they didn’t quite fit or don’t really give any insight about the book.
Moonrise
✿ Book is actually a really powerful story of injustice.
✿ Focuses on the oftentimes forgotten families of people who are incarcerated.
✿ Written in verse, which is unique and easy to read.
✿ Has nothing to do with the moon, rising or otherwise?
✿ Why does this cover look so fantasy-ish?
✿ Maybe I missed the line where this title ties in to this story?
✿ I don’t get it …
The Doll Factory
✿ There is, in fact, a doll factory in this book.
✿ Exactly 12.2483% of the plot takes place there.
✿ I may have made up the prior statistics.
✿ Honestly, it has no bearing on the plot, except being the place the protagonist is working when the book starts.
✿ Why not call it, like, The Curio Collector or something that actually matters to the story?!
The Invention of Wings
✿ Has nothing to do with inventing wings, metaphorically or otherwise.
✿ Really powerful theme of pre-slaves in Africa knowing how to fly, but losing that magic along the way.
✿ More potentially trying to find wings than invent them, since they … sort of already exist?
✿ Spoiler alert: no actual inventing of anything takes place in this book.
✿ I know this isn’t about covers, but … that cover also means nothing compared to the content of this book.
✿ Humans != birds. Not even when they learn to fly, thanks.
Sky in the Deep
✿ I loved this book, but … what does “Sky in the Deep” even mean?
✿ Makes me think of sky reflecting off the ocean.
✿ The ocean makes an appearance for 2.538% of this book.
✿ But if it were a character, it’d obviously be a villain.
✿ I googled this, and according to the author, it’s based on one throwaway scene which obviously did not mean anywhere near as much to me as it did to her.
✿ The explanation is on her website’s FAQs.
✿ It’s a bad sign if you need a FAQ to explain your title because that many people were confused.
Sing, Unburied, Sing
✿ I love the idea of this title, and it’s poetic, but I still had to Google the meaning.
✿ Because, I mean, there’s no obvious connection to the summary.
✿ Premise: The souls that were killed violently and left unburied, without justice, sing out their grief.
✿ The actual story seems to be a coming-of-age about a biracial kid learning to find his place in the world.
✿ Maybe don’t change it, per se, but add something about ghosts singing or the song of the ghosts, etc, to clue we poor clueless folk in.
Falls the Shadow
✿ I don’t know, it’s a book about clones. I haven’t read it yet.
✿ Maybe the clones are called shadows? Not in the summary, at least.
✿ Still wouldn’t make grammatical sense, even if that were the case.
✿ Are shadows some sort of theme in this book?
✿ Someone help me out here! *flails*
Rule
✿ The problem sometimes with one-word titles: words can be overused and boring.
✿ Okay, yeah, I get it, someone has to ascend to the throne and rule. *cue eye roll*
✿ One of the most boring titles I’ve ever seen.
✿ Would’ve completely passed this by if the cover wasn’t so eye-catching.
✿ It’s called Rule and there’s a crown on the front. I WONDER WHAT IT’S ABOUT.
✿ Feels too tropey and overdone instead of standing out, like the summary actually does.
The Night Trilogy (Night, Dawn, Day)
✿ I love the idea of this, but I think the metaphor is stretched a little too far.
✿ Night is a huuuuge theme in Night (duh).
✿ And Dawn and Day fit the extended metaphor … but it’s a little too extended for me.
✿ I was super confused when I first heard of Night and didn’t know it was a trilogy.
✿ Glad I read it. Think everyone should read it. Wish it was a little clearer, particularly with the last two titles.
Onyx & Ivory
✿ Sounds really pretty and rolls off the tongue nicely.
✿ Means absolutely nothing to me in regards to the story.
✿ Summary mentions neither onyx nor ivory.
✿ If it was an or, I’d choose onyx. But I guess I’ll take both, since it’s and?
✿ I assume it refers to two characters, one who’s onyx and the other … well, you get it.
Warlight
✿ Example of good intentions gone awry.
✿ Warlight = dim lights used to guide traffic in blackouts during the war.
✿ Apparently supposed to be an allegory for secrecy and uncertainty.
✿ I had to Google what warlights were.
✿ Also … never would have made that connection myself.
So as not to be the complete whiner that I totally am, I offer up for you now: a handful of titles that tell you nothing about the book but that I like anyway.
Because I’m a contradictory bookwyrm and like what I like, and it doesn’t have to make sense, okay?!
Atlas Shrugged
✿ Makes very little sense until you hit the titular quote.
✿ Stuck in my mind as one of my favorite quotes still to this day.
✿ Summary hints at the allegory.
“I … don’t know. What … could he do? What would you tell him?”
“To shrug.”
Unwind
✿ One word, but an uncommon, evocative word.
✿ Clearly explains in the summary what that one word means.
✿ Suddenly, title becomes creepy as hell.
✿ That cover really doesn’t help with the creepy vibes, either.
Everything, Everything
✿ Summary sums this one up nicely. Don’t even have to wonder long.
✿ “I feel myself starting to change—starting to want things. […] To want everything, everything the world has to offer.”
Bazaar of Bad Dreams
✿ Anthology of short stories that doesn’t have a titular short story.
✿ Anthologies are hard to sum up, but … yeah, this pretty much covers it.
✿ Better than just saying, “Here Be Nightmares.”
✿ Curious, evocative, but makes it clear exactly what you’re getting within.
I really liked your reaction to Sing, Unburied, Sing. I would have made the same assumptions about it!
My TTT.
Thanks! I can’t wait to read it. I’ve just picked up the first book, though, so it might be a little while. :3
Haha I have this a lot with books that are translated to dutch or get given an entirely different title. The Surface Breaks was translated to Mermaid. Sure it is about mermaids but it is more about feminism… Its just so unappealing. Fine. A mermaid, whatever.
That seems like a weird change to make. Mermaid is just … okay. Lots of books are about mermaids. I love The Surface Breaks as a title, though, and the double meaning it can have. :3
I totally agree with you on one word titles! They really are super super boring and often times confusing as hell😁
I always feel like it’s sort of like … duh? xD I can tell it’s about a damsel. Now tell me more lol.
That quote doesn’t fit the story in Atlas Shrugged. What kind of title would you use for a doctoral dissertation on Laisse Faire economics?
Well, I thought it did. ‾\_(ツ)_/‾ If you’ve got a title that you think would fit better, though, I’d love to hear it.
I had trouble coming up with replacement titles for this topic (so I didn’t do it). I love your idea of finding titles that don’t fit and giving reasons why, though! And yes, there’s a problem if you need an FAQ to explain your title. I can’t say that I’ll be any better when I get a book finished to the point of coming up for a title for it, but this is a good list of things to be careful of.
I had a really slow day at work yesterday to come up with a way to spin this. It took a while, though. xD
This is why I have a group of friends that help me with titles. When they stop smacking me over the head every time I suggest one, I know I’m getting close. 😛
But that also makes me wonder how much say authors have in the title. I know I’ve read where authors had to change their titles for publication, but I don’t think I’ve heard how much say they get.
LOL, sometimes slow days at work can still be useful! 😀
I’ve heard that authors sometimes have say over their titles, but other times really don’t. I try not to get too mad at authors for the titles I don’t like because of that.
Yeah, it’s really hard to tell these days what authors do and don’t have say in, because I know that there’s a lot people *think* they have a say in that they don’t. So I don’t just assume anymore. xD
I’ve started to assume that authors have absolutely nothing to do with their covers, since so many of them get so little say in that. So frustrating!
I looked up Unwind, and wow! Have you read it? It intrigues me, but I’m afraid it would be too much for me.
Title aside, the cover for Falls the Shadows is mind-trippy!
My TTT.
I haven’t yet. I have the whole series, because I read Neal Shusterman’s newer work and really enjoyed it. I just haven’t had a chance to read it yet. I’ve heard that it’s pretty good, but not as good as his newer stuff. xD
That’s so true! I love the cover lol.
I’ll check out what people say on Goodreads. It may go on my list of books to consider that I’m not quite ready to put on my TBR list yet.
I agree with you completely. Some of these strike me as pretentious…as in, yes, I named my book with this elevated one word title that has nothing to do with the story, but if you were a clever person, you’d see what I was getting at.
I do wonder, though, how much say authors get in their title and how much they have to go with what the publishers think is the current trend and will appeal the most.
Here Be Nightmares is going to be the title of my WIP and I’m going to dedicate it to you and this post.
*throws some money at you* Can I already go ahead and preorder my copy? I want a signed edition, though, please and thank you. 😉
You know the song wonderwall by oasis? Which contextually I guess is supposed to be some guy protecting his girl from well the world herself? Everything? It is the Gallaghers I try not to ask too much. Anyhow Noel ripped the word Wonderwall off from a Ringo Starr movie (99.9% sure that is right).
Well falls the shadow is from T S Eliot and that is where the title came from.
Huh, that’s interesting. I didn’t know that.
Yeah, but it makes sense in that poem? I don’t know how that relates to the book. Or how the poem plays into the book? xD
I couldnt tell you as I don’t know anything about either! Just thought I would help you out.
yooooo
I loved your take on this!!!
I decided to not do this top ten because it didn’t really resonate within me and I just love your spin on it. this one in particular: Why not call it, like, The Curio Collector or something that actually matters to the story?!
YEES
I also love the word curio so so much
Thank you! It seems like a lot of people struggled with this one lol. Curio is a really fun word to say. I mean, I’ve heard it before, but I didn’t pay much attention to it until I read Remarkable Creatures a few years back and I was like … why do we not use the word curio more?!
Love your thoughts on all these titles! Sometimes I really do wonder how a title comes to be or why an author chose a particular scene to define their story by when it only takes place in a small part of the book? Like what you said about Sky in the Deep (I read the FAQ… It was a… Meh explanation? is that rude? LOL) but also like The Doll Factory and stuff. Is it just meant to sound creepy? Also, I had no idea Night was a trilogy!??! How did I not know this!? And … why? Lol
I agree. But as I’ve said elsewhere … I don’t actually know just how much say authors get over their titles, versus what the publisher thinks will sell? Maybe they had more relevant titles and they were vetoed by the publisher? I honestly have no idea.
Don’t feel bad! I just found out last year, and I don’t even remember how I stumbled onto it, but around Christmas I replaced my solo Night book with a combined trilogy on my shelf. I just … haven’t read the whole thing yet lol. Story of my life.
Great twist this week! And I didn’t know Night was a trilogy either… Hmm.
My TTT!
I feel like it’s not common knowledge. xD I think most people know Night, but I don’t see a lot of people who realize there’s two more books (and I sure didn’t, either).
What’s always bugged me about the last title is that I don’t know why the word is repeated just like it is, instead of “Everything, Every Thing,” or the other way around — like, the collective noun referring to whatever it’s supposed to refer to now (the fact that she wants everything because she can currently have so little?), plus referencing how many individual things can potentially harm her. Otherwise, why not just make it a 1-word title? (too generic, I suppose…WHICH IS WHY CHANGING IT UP IS COOL)
This definitely bugged me at first, but it’s sort of explained in the blurb:
“I learn that when I talk to him, my whole world opens up, and I feel myself starting to change—starting to want things. To want out of my bubble. To want everything, everything the world has to offer.”
I mean, I still haven’t read it … because I’m bad at these things? But I assume that’s where it came from. I agree that one everything would’ve sufficed, though.
Haha! Enjoyed reading your thoughts about these book titles! Great way to end my work day/week.
Nice one!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it. 😀
[…] In Characters || Ft. Questionable Morals ✦ Extraordinary Titles That Demand Some Attention ✦ Titles That Tell You Nothing About The Book ✦ Wonderfully Bookish Pumpkin Carvings ✦ October 2 ✦ October 9 ✦ October 16 ✦ October 23 […]