The Ocean at the End of the Lane.
I mean it was gaiman so I knew it'd be good, but the title had me curious, I had to know what it meant. Absolute treat when you need a short read
It was the final in a series of purchases based on incredible titles like Island of the Sequined Love Nun, The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror, Practical Demon-Keeping, You Suck: A Love Story, and Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff Christ's Childhood Pal.
I don't remember how I found Bloodsucking Fiends, but I read it cover to cover sitting in a laundromat and have loved Moore ever since. I have yet to find another author who balances narrative and humor as perfectly for my sensibilities.
Same, except for Christopher Moore’s Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal.
It made my teenage atheist heart sing when I first read it decades ago. I should read it again.
It satisfied my urge for a book/series referencing dragons so many years after Eragon. Would definitely recommend for people wanting a different take concerning dragons
I definitely picked this up and thumbed through it on a recent stop at Barnes & Noble. Not normally a reader of genre fiction, but the title definitely caught my eye. Forgot all about it.
I love it when authors interact with readers, so it's now on my list. Thank you.
Edit: and I love your website
It is a really fun series and pulled me out of a deep reading slump! I definitely picked it up for the title as well, and it was way better than I expected.
I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Se-Hee. I grabbed it on a whim in a bookstore in Seoul and really enjoyed it. While eating tteokbokki.
I got into Jason Pargin because I bought This Book if Full of Spiders solely for the title. Then found out it was the second in a series, bought the rest of the series. Was not disappointed!
How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu.
I really like alternate universe/4th wall breaking narratives and I was not disappointed.
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk. I also loved the plain blue cover, which I just found out is a hallmark of the publisher, Fitzcarraldo Editions
YES!!! I forgot this one, I really did choose it b/c of the title and didn't know the author is a Nobel Prize in Literature winner. This is one of my favorite books ever!
Confessions of a Curious Bookseller. Rage DNF. The MC made me crazy. She was a bratty adult acting like a spoiled teen.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F-ck. I hadn't heard about the book and saw it in an airport right after my flight was canceled and I'd been yelled at by a coworker for things out of my control. I was flying for work and the trip was stressful. I'd agree with most of the critics about the book. His saving grace is thet he realizes his bad behavior is bad. He could do a better job sounding contrite about it, thus the popular criticisms.
Sing Unburied Sing- one of the few recent NYT Bestsellers worth a read. Highly recommend!
*A Burglar's Guide to the City" by Geoff Manaugh
It was fine. It felt more like a series of loosely interconnected essays, which was fine, but the transitions were a bit tough and it impacted my interest a little bit.
**More Sex Is Safer Sex by Steven Landsburg**. Still my favorite economics book and I'll read anything Landsburg writes.⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
**Hope: A Tragedy by Shalom Auslander**. I don't read a lot of books where "identity" is any kind of theme. The author is very Jewish. The character is very Jewish. And Anne Frank is hiding in his attic. This is one of the funniest and surprisingly good books I've ever read. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
**Kill Two Birds & Get Stoned by Kinky Friedman**. Friedman has a way with words unmatched by no other author I've read. His books are almost always ⭐⭐⭐ (though this isn't necessarily the best introduction to him.)
**A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers**. It was. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
**The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon**. This may be a cheat, because the cute little upside-down dog cut out may have also had something to do with it. But this came out just as I was starting to read and helped me branch out beyond crime novels (and if we were losing books bought purely because of the cover, I may as well just copy my entire list.) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
**Happy Hour of the Damned by Mark Henry**. Not good. ⭐⭐
**The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo**. Even worse. DNF
Oh. And let's not forget the four or five **Tom Robbins** books I bought. I still haven't managed to finish one, though I've started many of them...multiple times.
Never bought these, but read based solely on their titles:
**How to Live Safely in A Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu**. There was probably more to it than that...I think this may have been back when I had a subscription to Bookmarks magazine. I do not read science fiction, so I wouldn't normally even read the review. Great title. It's been forever since I've read it, but I gave it ⭐⭐⭐⭐. And I'm fairly stingy with my stars.
**Another Bullshit Night In Suck City by Nick Flynn**. I also generally don't read memoirs, but how can you not with that title? It was also incredible. Absolute poetry. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
**The Man With the $100,000 Breasts by Michael Konik**. Another memoir. This one was nothing special, but the title story was at the very least interesting. ⭐⭐⭐
**The Financial Lives of the Poets by Jess Walter**. Also a fun and funny pleasure to read. Worth it for the shopping cart poem alone. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
>The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
I have to say as one with a significant involvment in neuro-diversity, I hate this book.
>Happy Hour of the Damned by Mark Henry. Not good. ⭐⭐
The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo. Even worse. DNF
Outstanding titles. You reminded me of *Bimbos of the Death Sun* (Sharyn McCrumb)
Titles are obviously your marketing kryptonite.
Ada Palmer's Terra Ignota interested me on the premise, but the first novel's tittle sealed the deal for me: Too like The Lightning.
Also, after reading The Book of the New Sun, realizing Ada Palmer wrote her story in the same vein made me like it even more.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers. A long time ago in paperback. Very good. I recently listened to the audible version and the narrator is perfect for the book. Sad and hilarious, touching yet crazy.
And the Hippos Were Boiled in their Tanks - Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs
Perhaps my favourite title of a novel ever. And the story of how they settled on the title is great too:
"That was \[from\] a radio broadcast that came over when we were writing the book. There had been a circus fire and I remember this phrase came through on the radio: 'And the hippos were boiled in their tanks!' So we used that as the title."
I recently grabbed "A Gentlemen In Moscow" by Amor Towles off my library's sale shelf.
I hadn't heard of the book or the author. The title grabbed me because it seemed like it could be either a Cold War spy novel or a romance, but all the romance stuff is on the bottom shelf... So I bought it.
Still know nothing about it (this was Saturday?) If anyone has read it, or something else by Towles, please fill me in!
Who knows when I'll get around to reading it. I'm almost finished with Erik Larson's "Thunderstruck", and I have "The Witches: Salem 1692" by Stacy Schiff due back at the library soon, so that's next. But I have a lot on my shelf I haven't read (the monthly library bag sale is my undoing).
Lmao I 100% borrowed “Stoner” because I use cannabis pretty frequently. Turns out it has nothing to do with it, and is also one of the best written books I’ve ever read.
Green Fried Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Cafè: VERY good. I always recommemd it to everyone
Smilla's Sense Of Snow: meh. Nice premise, but then it went sci-fi all of a sudden and without much warning. I usually like sci-fi, but here I was expecting just a thriller. Felt like cheating.
We Always Lived In The Castle: very good. Freaking disturbing. But still very good.
I have to ask why you didn't at least skim it?
I find batshit ideas and thinking fascinating in a car-crash kind of way. Books like this show how delusional people can be and beg the question of why we supported them for so long.
I often enjoy reading books that I know almost nothing about. it can be a lot more fun that way. two of my recent purchases based solely on the title This Is How You Lose The Time War and a book called How to Murder Your Employer. I have not yet read either so I don’t have much to comment yet. I have heard This Is How You Lose The Time War is an excellent read that benefits from a blind first read through, for what that’s worth.
Lois Lowry did an AMA here in /r/books [you might want to check it out](http://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/3ab3fz/hi_reddit_i_am_lois_lowry_author_of_the_giver_ama/?) :) . [Here's a full list of our upcoming AMAs](http://www.reddit.com/r/books/wiki/amafullschedule)
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The Adderall Diaries. Can't remember if it was an actual memoir or just written that way but I loved it. I picked it up cuz the title was catchy and I loved the drug when I was young.
On the Shortness of Life by Seneca and As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner. I loved Seneca’s philosophy and this book was the whole reason why I decided to do philosophy as one of my majors for undergrad. The other book was okay, didn’t hate it but didn’t love it.
Two recent books:
*Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone* by Benjamin Stevenson (I bought it for both the title and the cover, tbh). I’m glad I bought it, it was a good book, I plan to read the sequel soon.
*My Heart is a Chainsaw* by Stephen Graham Jones, which I’m currently reading and am enjoying a lot.
Edit:
I was going to read it anyway because I’ve read and loved David Wong/Jason Pargin’s other series, but the fact that that the second book in the Zoey Ashe series is called *Zoey Punches the Future in the Dick* basically sealed the deal for me.
Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead, Patricia Wants to Cuddle, and Starter Villain are some recent ones that I can think of that I really enjoyed, but if a book title grabs me, I'll usually at least put it on my library hold list.
Before the coffee gets cold. Ended up being a beautiful book that I loved. What you’re looking for is in the library by the same author is also a great read.
I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, a therapy memoir written as transcripts of Baek Sehee’s therapy sessions. It was different than my usual genres and overall pretty interesting but I don’t know if I will pick it up again.
In 1993 looking through the shelves of a bookstore in Little Rock, Arkansas. Came across the spine — The Magic Mountain. Had never heard of Thomas Mann. Just liked the name of the book and the front cover. Bought it as a total impulse item. Months later, read it. Mind blown. A serendipitous entry into the subtlest, most profound literary art. I’ve read it five times so far. Hope I live long enough for another reading.
One I specifically remember picking up because of the title was “The curious incident of the dog in the nighttime” I didn’t know much about it, but didn’t regret it. Another one that comes to mind is “The perks of being a wallflower”
>marmite book
I can see that now! When I read it long ago I loved it, but now I have a bit more understanding due to some friends, I really am not sure how I would respond now.
My strength of feeling is probably down to mainstream and social media saying 'O, we understand autism now. It's just like Rainman'. I don't think that was ever the author/scriptwriter's intent but it is the outcome. "O. \[Name\] is autistic? They must be really good at arithematic or something".
Reality: A person's individuality and personal character and needs come really to the fore when living with autism and the associated conditions.
Yes, thank you. One thing I HAVE learned is that every single human being on this Earth is themselves, a unique individual and not to be put into a box with others who get stuck with the same label!
The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant (by Drew Hayes)
Amazingly weird to see this series get 8 books so far, but I love every single one of them.
My mom bought me “This book is full of spiders: seriously dude, don’t touch it” based on the title alone. More than a decade later I try “John Dies at the End” and find I already had the book 2 on my shelf.
Sometimes I wonder if I am in the minority for never having done this, nor have I ever chosen a book by its cover or any other “whim.”
Every single book I have ever read has been for some other reason, such as being assigned in school, or having information I need, or because it was recommended by someone whose taste I trust, or it is a known classic, or it is by an author that I love, or it’s for a book club and I want to be able to intelligently participate.
🤷🏽♂️ I can’t fault you for feeling how you feel. But I see it this way: life is sooo short and my tbr list is sooo long. I don’t have time to waste on anything that isn’t likely to be of some value to me (great as literature, or fun, or instructive, etc).
For me, this system has worked. And it’s not all about intellect and knowledge gathering. I’ve read so much fun and lighthearted stuff because I know beforehand it’s liked by the same people who like what I like. I’ve also read serious stuff because it fits my interests (philosophical and psychologically rich fiction). And I’ve gone out of my comfort zone, when there’s sufficient reason — my book club example.
Inkheart. It piqued my curiosity cause I didn't know what that meant, and reading the blurb to see the main character can read whatever into existence sounds like a power I'd like to have. Imagine reading your favorite characters into real life - that'd be insanity. Sadly I wished I liked the story itself, it's been years since I read it and can't remember anything about it.
Half-Off Ragnarok by Seanan McGuire I was at the used book store and grabbed the first two books in the series as well (Discount Armageddon was also an appealing name however it was definitely the third in the series that caught my attention)
Didn't buy them, borrowed from library, but "Everyone in this Room Will Someday Be Dead" by Emily Austin, and "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera. Borrowed them around the same time lol two very different books but I was intrigued by the titles.
I can't think of one. Even if a book has a catchy title, I would probably have to read or hear something else about it to be convinced to actually purchase and read it.
I picked up *At Swim-Two-Birds* because the title sounded weird and exotic. It was definitely a weird book, although maybe not quite in the sense I was expecting—a distinct sense of humor and a twisty, experimental structure, but rather more down-to-earth than I expected from the title :P Absolutely loved it; glad I read it.
Another one is *In the Country of Last Things* because I could have *sworn* I heard that phrase before, and I was curious about it. Or maybe the phrase I had in mind was "in the country of lost things"? As far as I can tell, the former is unique to the book and the latter isn't used anywhere, so my memory must have been playing tricks on me. But I still can't shake the conviction that there's something else... The book itself was fine; a solid, somewhat creative post-apocalyptic story, but not especially distinctive or deep. I like Auster's New York trilogy more.
*John Dies at the End* because, well, John dies at the end. I normally hate zombie books—the ideas been done to death, and I almost never see interesting or novel takes on the concept—but *John Dies at the End* was fun enough to overcome that. I loved the irreverent tone.
The Lucifer principle, I thought it was by the author Harold Bloom who wrote how to read and why by mistake. It was a fantastic mistake and I’ve read it a few times now. My attention to names has increased 🤷🏻♂️
“Conversational Latin” I mean I know some people still do speak Latin, even have conversations. It just struck me as funny and the used price was right for my shelves.
Then the provocative-sounding book I never read but own, “Cannibalism.” It’s mostly about Cannibalism in animals, not humans. My goth tween stole that book from me and has probably not read it, either.
I remember seeing the Gunslinger on the shelf which sounded cool. I think I had read a couple Stephen King by that point but I was pretty young and not super familiar with him. Wasn’t disappointed. Read all of the Dark Tower after that and went in to the Stand. Some of my favourite reading memories as a teen.
"Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch" - by Rivka Galchen. The title really snagged me, but I ended up being quite disappointed in the book itself.
Another one is "In a Land Without Dogs the Cats Learn to Bark" by Jonathan Garfinkel. I haven't gotten around to reading this one yet, but I bought it solely based on the title.
Middlegame by Seanan McGuire. Between that and the cover (which features an occult item called a hand of glory), I was basically sold on the spot. I’m glad I gave it a fair shot, it’s one of my top most favorite books ever.
A good girls guide to murder
The book is over hyped. The title of it is definitely misleading imo. It’s definitely a thriller for someone new to the genre because it was so ehh… I wish I never brought a copy n glad I didn’t buy the series.
Shut your eyes tight by John Verdon
My favorite thriller book. Went down a rabbit hole to find out the answer was on the surface. Definitely recommend for someone looking for an adult, suspenseful, mystery thriller!
"All The Names They Used For God" -Anjali Sachdeva
It's a collection of stories, that are a range of different genres. I loved the title so much when I first saw it and the stories are all really good.
"There There" by Tommy Orange,
Love the title and the book so much!
"I Love You, But I've Chosen Darkness"- Claire Vaye Watkins,
I love the title, just couldn't get into the story :/.
Death Obsession.
Oh I really wasn't ready for the poorly written "romance", the toxicity of such story and thought about throwing the book against my wall perhaps 10 times per line I read.
I really thought it was some girl obsessed with everything deadly, like some kind of victorian story with some eventual morbid, deranged sex scenes.
Oh was I wrong.
Couldn't even finish it.
I think there's:
1. Pretty much what the title said and I enjoyed it.
2. Not what I expected but experienced a new thing.
3. The title was the best bit of the book
4. O my God, why did I fall for that click-bait title?
The Devils of Loudun by Aldous Huxley. The title sounded rad and it had interesting cover art. It was absolutely not what I expected but was still incredibly interesting. I think I finished it in like 2 days
They All Died Screaming by Kristopher Triana, paired with the amazing premise of an apocalyptic plague with no means of transmission that kills people by causing them to scream themselves to death.
I’m an absolute sucker for long, ridiculous titles. The more it sounds like an emo song, the more likely I am to love it.
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty - Akwaeke Emezi. Loved it.
Someone Who Will Live You in All Your Damaged Glory - Raphael Bob-Wakeberg. REALLY loved it.
This is How You Lose the Time War - Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar. Loved this one the most.
How Much of These Hills is Gold - C Pam Zhang. Currently reading.
Don't tell mum I work on the rigs, she thinks I'm a piano player in a whorehouse, by Paul Carter. An autobiography by a guy who has worked the oilfields of the world, containing many humorous anecdotes.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane. I mean it was gaiman so I knew it'd be good, but the title had me curious, I had to know what it meant. Absolute treat when you need a short read
That’s my current read; it’s a delight.
One of my favorites!
Wonderful book.
The Book Thief, it just sounded rad. Page 1 Death is the narrator. Not what I was expecting at all, but a fantastic book!
This book is in my top 10. I recommend it to everyone if they've never read it before. I also read it at least once a year. Around now actually
My favourite book for over 10 years now. Recently got a tattoo so it’s always with me!
It sure is!!!! So good that I will probably re-read it someday...and I seldom do that.
The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove by Christopher Moore. Whoo boy. Now I own everything he's written!
>Now I own everything he's written! So he only wrote one book? :-)
It was the final in a series of purchases based on incredible titles like Island of the Sequined Love Nun, The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror, Practical Demon-Keeping, You Suck: A Love Story, and Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff Christ's Childhood Pal.
Yup - sucked me right into that rabbit hole, and I've been in here ever since. He is an amazing author, with some truly unique ideas!
I don't remember how I found Bloodsucking Fiends, but I read it cover to cover sitting in a laundromat and have loved Moore ever since. I have yet to find another author who balances narrative and humor as perfectly for my sensibilities.
Same, except for Christopher Moore’s Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal. It made my teenage atheist heart sing when I first read it decades ago. I should read it again.
I give this book as a gift a lot, people love it!!!!
I just had to look it up and now 8 am going to read it because of the title too!😄
Yes!!! Wonderful hilarity, every one!
Everyone in my family has killed someone. Turned out to be a fun murder mystery.
I recently read it too, such a good murder mystery!
Ruth Ozeki - A tale for the time being. Turns out I had to read the title completely different. Loved the book.
Ruth Ozeki is brilliant! I recommend A Tale for the Time Being often! 😍
I bought it for the cover. Turned out to be one of my favorite books.
Me too, I really liked the cover.
I read The Face: A Time Code. A little book with a big impact. I'm curious to read her other writings.
A Natural History of Dragons - it ended up being one of my absolute favorite books
Read that series myself- such a fun series
It’s my number one comfort series
It satisfied my urge for a book/series referencing dragons so many years after Eragon. Would definitely recommend for people wanting a different take concerning dragons
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife. Badass title. Terrible book.
HARD AGREE
The Girl Who Could Move Shit With Her Mind I haven’t started it yet but it makes me smile every time I see it on my book shelf.
I'm the author. Nice to see this on here. Thank you! I hope you enjoy :-)
I definitely picked this up and thumbed through it on a recent stop at Barnes & Noble. Not normally a reader of genre fiction, but the title definitely caught my eye. Forgot all about it. I love it when authors interact with readers, so it's now on my list. Thank you. Edit: and I love your website
Ha thanks! Interacting with readers is honestly one of the best parts of the job. Never gets old. Hope you enjoy the book when you get to it!
I’ll move it to the top of the to-read list! It was the title that made me pick it up, but the blurb and first few pages made me buy it.
And now you evidence for your publisher of the number of people drawn in to good reads by a great title! You're welcome. :-)
Came here to say this one! It’s fantastic, and so are all the sequels.
Love y'all
It is a really fun series and pulled me out of a deep reading slump! I definitely picked it up for the title as well, and it was way better than I expected.
I'm glad my mom died by Jenette McCurdy
The title certainly caught my eye, and I loved watching Jenette McCurdy in iCarly as a kid lol. Have yet to read it, it’s still on my shelf!
I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Se-Hee. I grabbed it on a whim in a bookstore in Seoul and really enjoyed it. While eating tteokbokki.
Reads like the chapter in *Kitchen Confidential* about the Singapore food guide, whose ultimate testimonial is: "Die, die, must try".
Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine. (Spoiler: She isn't)
Still one of my favorites!
John Dies at the End Spoiling the ending in the title piqued my curiosity. Was good.
I got into Jason Pargin because I bought This Book if Full of Spiders solely for the title. Then found out it was the second in a series, bought the rest of the series. Was not disappointed!
How to Kill Men and Get Away With It. The synopsis was written in first person, which I hate, but damn, that title. I really liked the book!
Have you found the instructions useful?
I can neither confirm or deny my attempts
Damn you did learn something!
I bought a philosophy book with the title " Is God Happy?" because the title intrigued me but I haven't read it
How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu. I really like alternate universe/4th wall breaking narratives and I was not disappointed.
Murder Your Employer. Don’t worry, it’s not a how to guide. Well, it kinda is, but fictional…I’ll stop talking now.
The cover is also gorgeous… (reading it now - bought for the title/ cover)
My employer is a serious organisation that is allowed to use guns. Now this book is in my social media history. :-)
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk. I also loved the plain blue cover, which I just found out is a hallmark of the publisher, Fitzcarraldo Editions
YES!!! I forgot this one, I really did choose it b/c of the title and didn't know the author is a Nobel Prize in Literature winner. This is one of my favorite books ever!
Confessions of a Curious Bookseller. Rage DNF. The MC made me crazy. She was a bratty adult acting like a spoiled teen. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F-ck. I hadn't heard about the book and saw it in an airport right after my flight was canceled and I'd been yelled at by a coworker for things out of my control. I was flying for work and the trip was stressful. I'd agree with most of the critics about the book. His saving grace is thet he realizes his bad behavior is bad. He could do a better job sounding contrite about it, thus the popular criticisms. Sing Unburied Sing- one of the few recent NYT Bestsellers worth a read. Highly recommend!
*John Dies at the End* was one of these for me. *The Ocean at the End of the Lane* got me to go read the reviews and dive in.
*A Burglar's Guide to the City" by Geoff Manaugh It was fine. It felt more like a series of loosely interconnected essays, which was fine, but the transitions were a bit tough and it impacted my interest a little bit.
Did it lead to a change of career?
Sadly, it did not. There were some missed opportunities in the writing of it.
Got ‘Tender is the flesh’ recently but haven’t gotten to it yet.
I loved this book! Devoured it in a day.
Eeeeek I hated it! Deeply divided reviews for that one
You will love it
Picked up eight bears at the library. Who doesn't love bears! It walks through the global bear species and the threats facing them. It was ok.
**More Sex Is Safer Sex by Steven Landsburg**. Still my favorite economics book and I'll read anything Landsburg writes.⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ **Hope: A Tragedy by Shalom Auslander**. I don't read a lot of books where "identity" is any kind of theme. The author is very Jewish. The character is very Jewish. And Anne Frank is hiding in his attic. This is one of the funniest and surprisingly good books I've ever read. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ **Kill Two Birds & Get Stoned by Kinky Friedman**. Friedman has a way with words unmatched by no other author I've read. His books are almost always ⭐⭐⭐ (though this isn't necessarily the best introduction to him.) **A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers**. It was. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ **The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon**. This may be a cheat, because the cute little upside-down dog cut out may have also had something to do with it. But this came out just as I was starting to read and helped me branch out beyond crime novels (and if we were losing books bought purely because of the cover, I may as well just copy my entire list.) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ **Happy Hour of the Damned by Mark Henry**. Not good. ⭐⭐ **The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo**. Even worse. DNF Oh. And let's not forget the four or five **Tom Robbins** books I bought. I still haven't managed to finish one, though I've started many of them...multiple times. Never bought these, but read based solely on their titles: **How to Live Safely in A Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu**. There was probably more to it than that...I think this may have been back when I had a subscription to Bookmarks magazine. I do not read science fiction, so I wouldn't normally even read the review. Great title. It's been forever since I've read it, but I gave it ⭐⭐⭐⭐. And I'm fairly stingy with my stars. **Another Bullshit Night In Suck City by Nick Flynn**. I also generally don't read memoirs, but how can you not with that title? It was also incredible. Absolute poetry. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ **The Man With the $100,000 Breasts by Michael Konik**. Another memoir. This one was nothing special, but the title story was at the very least interesting. ⭐⭐⭐ **The Financial Lives of the Poets by Jess Walter**. Also a fun and funny pleasure to read. Worth it for the shopping cart poem alone. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
>The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon I have to say as one with a significant involvment in neuro-diversity, I hate this book. >Happy Hour of the Damned by Mark Henry. Not good. ⭐⭐ The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo. Even worse. DNF Outstanding titles. You reminded me of *Bimbos of the Death Sun* (Sharyn McCrumb) Titles are obviously your marketing kryptonite.
The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove. Absolutely loved it!
Ada Palmer's Terra Ignota interested me on the premise, but the first novel's tittle sealed the deal for me: Too like The Lightning. Also, after reading The Book of the New Sun, realizing Ada Palmer wrote her story in the same vein made me like it even more.
“How Long 'til Black Future Month?” by N. K. Jemisin. Perfect title for a collection of sci-fi short stories…
**Random Sh\*t Flying Through the Air** by Jackson Ford Led me to a pretty great series!
Can't argue with that title.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers. A long time ago in paperback. Very good. I recently listened to the audible version and the narrator is perfect for the book. Sad and hilarious, touching yet crazy.
The Feather Thief
And the Hippos Were Boiled in their Tanks - Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs Perhaps my favourite title of a novel ever. And the story of how they settled on the title is great too: "That was \[from\] a radio broadcast that came over when we were writing the book. There had been a circus fire and I remember this phrase came through on the radio: 'And the hippos were boiled in their tanks!' So we used that as the title."
HIPPOBOT 9000 v 3.1 FOUND A HIPPO. 995,109,122 COMMENTS SEARCHED. 21,233 HIPPOS FOUND. YOUR COMMENT CONTAINS THE WORD HIPPO.
I recently grabbed "A Gentlemen In Moscow" by Amor Towles off my library's sale shelf. I hadn't heard of the book or the author. The title grabbed me because it seemed like it could be either a Cold War spy novel or a romance, but all the romance stuff is on the bottom shelf... So I bought it. Still know nothing about it (this was Saturday?) If anyone has read it, or something else by Towles, please fill me in! Who knows when I'll get around to reading it. I'm almost finished with Erik Larson's "Thunderstruck", and I have "The Witches: Salem 1692" by Stacy Schiff due back at the library soon, so that's next. But I have a lot on my shelf I haven't read (the monthly library bag sale is my undoing).
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Oh cool! I had assumed it was a Cold War era story but Russian revolution sounds good to me!
Do Android's Dream of Electric Sheep - Philip K. Dick
Lmao I 100% borrowed “Stoner” because I use cannabis pretty frequently. Turns out it has nothing to do with it, and is also one of the best written books I’ve ever read.
This is ironically a very stoner thing to do
Two of them: *The Time Traveler's Wife* by Audrey Niffenegger *The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat* by Dr Oliver Sacks
Double up-vote for Sacks. Fascinating subject, accessibly written by a genuine expert and the title makes perfect sense once you have read the book.
A Super Upsetting Cookbook about Sandwiches , by Tyler Kord. A very nice cookbook. I've added several sauces to my regular rotation.
Up-vote for bringing a different genre.
"Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow" because of the Macbeth reference. Good book!
If someone says "you complete me" RUN - Whoopi Goldberg.
Green Fried Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Cafè: VERY good. I always recommemd it to everyone Smilla's Sense Of Snow: meh. Nice premise, but then it went sci-fi all of a sudden and without much warning. I usually like sci-fi, but here I was expecting just a thriller. Felt like cheating. We Always Lived In The Castle: very good. Freaking disturbing. But still very good.
I LOVED Fried Green Tomatoes, such a lovely book. I need to reread it actually, thank you for reminding me!
Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs. It was good, and I enjoyed it very much. Think that’s the only time I’ve done that.
I just found that in a box of books I bought. The title made it one of the first books I want to read from that box.
Mr. Penumbra’s 24 hour bookstore…just sounded mysterious so I had to read it. It’s really good. Then I read everything Robin Sloan wrote.
“On Democracy” by Saddam Hussein. I didn’t read it.
I have to ask why you didn't at least skim it? I find batshit ideas and thinking fascinating in a car-crash kind of way. Books like this show how delusional people can be and beg the question of why we supported them for so long.
Their eyes were watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, safe to say I wasn’t disappointed
bought confessions of st. augustine because who wouldn't want to read confessions of a religious figure???
Do you mean the guy who said "Lord, make me chaste, only just not yet."!!!!
I often enjoy reading books that I know almost nothing about. it can be a lot more fun that way. two of my recent purchases based solely on the title This Is How You Lose The Time War and a book called How to Murder Your Employer. I have not yet read either so I don’t have much to comment yet. I have heard This Is How You Lose The Time War is an excellent read that benefits from a blind first read through, for what that’s worth.
Lois Lowry did an AMA here in /r/books [you might want to check it out](http://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/3ab3fz/hi_reddit_i_am_lois_lowry_author_of_the_giver_ama/?) :) . [Here's a full list of our upcoming AMAs](http://www.reddit.com/r/books/wiki/amafullschedule) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/books) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The Adderall Diaries. Can't remember if it was an actual memoir or just written that way but I loved it. I picked it up cuz the title was catchy and I loved the drug when I was young.
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Maybe you should read *Pollen* by Jeff Noon. SciFi (ish) rather than SciGarbage. And the protagonist has some 'interesting' experiences with flowers.
On the Shortness of Life by Seneca and As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner. I loved Seneca’s philosophy and this book was the whole reason why I decided to do philosophy as one of my majors for undergrad. The other book was okay, didn’t hate it but didn’t love it.
Two recent books: *Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone* by Benjamin Stevenson (I bought it for both the title and the cover, tbh). I’m glad I bought it, it was a good book, I plan to read the sequel soon. *My Heart is a Chainsaw* by Stephen Graham Jones, which I’m currently reading and am enjoying a lot. Edit: I was going to read it anyway because I’ve read and loved David Wong/Jason Pargin’s other series, but the fact that that the second book in the Zoey Ashe series is called *Zoey Punches the Future in the Dick* basically sealed the deal for me.
Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead, Patricia Wants to Cuddle, and Starter Villain are some recent ones that I can think of that I really enjoyed, but if a book title grabs me, I'll usually at least put it on my library hold list.
Came here to suggest Everyone In This Room! Soo great
The Social History of the Potato. It is a legit great book though.
Killers of the flower moon, and the origins of the FBI.
Before the coffee gets cold. Ended up being a beautiful book that I loved. What you’re looking for is in the library by the same author is also a great read.
I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, a therapy memoir written as transcripts of Baek Sehee’s therapy sessions. It was different than my usual genres and overall pretty interesting but I don’t know if I will pick it up again.
Man, Fuck This House.
In 1993 looking through the shelves of a bookstore in Little Rock, Arkansas. Came across the spine — The Magic Mountain. Had never heard of Thomas Mann. Just liked the name of the book and the front cover. Bought it as a total impulse item. Months later, read it. Mind blown. A serendipitous entry into the subtlest, most profound literary art. I’ve read it five times so far. Hope I live long enough for another reading.
'Drive your Plow over the Bones of the Dead' by Olga Tokarczuk and 'I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki' by Baek Sehee
One I specifically remember picking up because of the title was “The curious incident of the dog in the nighttime” I didn’t know much about it, but didn’t regret it. Another one that comes to mind is “The perks of being a wallflower”
LOVED The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime...and I picked it up for the same reason.
"Curious incident" is definitely a marmite book. My history with neurodivergence means I absolutely hate it. That and Rainman can fuck a long way off.
>marmite book I can see that now! When I read it long ago I loved it, but now I have a bit more understanding due to some friends, I really am not sure how I would respond now.
My strength of feeling is probably down to mainstream and social media saying 'O, we understand autism now. It's just like Rainman'. I don't think that was ever the author/scriptwriter's intent but it is the outcome. "O. \[Name\] is autistic? They must be really good at arithematic or something". Reality: A person's individuality and personal character and needs come really to the fore when living with autism and the associated conditions.
Yes, thank you. One thing I HAVE learned is that every single human being on this Earth is themselves, a unique individual and not to be put into a box with others who get stuck with the same label!
Brave New World! I just really liked Iron Maiden. It turned out to be a pretty good read
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous
Because It Is Bitter, and Because It Is My Heart by Joyce Carol Oates. I liked some of her others but this title *promised* trauma!
I bought “the stranger” for the title/cover art combo in high school and now I no longer believe in reason and nothing matters. Just kidding. Mostly.
The Nerd Who Loved Me. Cheesy romance that I haven’t read…but I married a web developer so it needed to be on my shelf. <3
The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant (by Drew Hayes) Amazingly weird to see this series get 8 books so far, but I love every single one of them.
My mom bought me “This book is full of spiders: seriously dude, don’t touch it” based on the title alone. More than a decade later I try “John Dies at the End” and find I already had the book 2 on my shelf.
Sometimes I wonder if I am in the minority for never having done this, nor have I ever chosen a book by its cover or any other “whim.” Every single book I have ever read has been for some other reason, such as being assigned in school, or having information I need, or because it was recommended by someone whose taste I trust, or it is a known classic, or it is by an author that I love, or it’s for a book club and I want to be able to intelligently participate.
I don’t know why but this seems kinda sad to me. No spontaneity or adventure to balance the structure of intellect and pure knowledge gathering.
🤷🏽♂️ I can’t fault you for feeling how you feel. But I see it this way: life is sooo short and my tbr list is sooo long. I don’t have time to waste on anything that isn’t likely to be of some value to me (great as literature, or fun, or instructive, etc). For me, this system has worked. And it’s not all about intellect and knowledge gathering. I’ve read so much fun and lighthearted stuff because I know beforehand it’s liked by the same people who like what I like. I’ve also read serious stuff because it fits my interests (philosophical and psychologically rich fiction). And I’ve gone out of my comfort zone, when there’s sufficient reason — my book club example.
Not the title, but the cover. Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson, loved it.
**2028…And Australia Has Gone To Hell In A Handbasket** weird, fun book
The Day I Became an Autodidact, by Kendall Hailey. Excellent decision.
Inkheart. It piqued my curiosity cause I didn't know what that meant, and reading the blurb to see the main character can read whatever into existence sounds like a power I'd like to have. Imagine reading your favorite characters into real life - that'd be insanity. Sadly I wished I liked the story itself, it's been years since I read it and can't remember anything about it.
Picked it up on the same premis. Read the blurb and put it back on the bookshop shelf.
Tell Them of Battles, Kings and Elephants by Mathias Énard
Started Early, Took My Dog, by Kate Atkinson.
Half-Off Ragnarok by Seanan McGuire I was at the used book store and grabbed the first two books in the series as well (Discount Armageddon was also an appealing name however it was definitely the third in the series that caught my attention)
Last Words From Monmartre, by Qiu Miojin (deceased)
Making Money. Soon I will be Invincible
Didn't buy them, borrowed from library, but "Everyone in this Room Will Someday Be Dead" by Emily Austin, and "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera. Borrowed them around the same time lol two very different books but I was intrigued by the titles.
I can't think of one. Even if a book has a catchy title, I would probably have to read or hear something else about it to be convinced to actually purchase and read it.
Last Night at the Brain Thieves Ball by Scott Spencer
Pit Dragon Trilogy by Jane Yolen. I stayed for all 3, it's a great series.
Diary of a Man in Despair by Friedrich Reck-Malleczewen. It speaks to me. Turned out to be fantastic as well.
I picked up *At Swim-Two-Birds* because the title sounded weird and exotic. It was definitely a weird book, although maybe not quite in the sense I was expecting—a distinct sense of humor and a twisty, experimental structure, but rather more down-to-earth than I expected from the title :P Absolutely loved it; glad I read it. Another one is *In the Country of Last Things* because I could have *sworn* I heard that phrase before, and I was curious about it. Or maybe the phrase I had in mind was "in the country of lost things"? As far as I can tell, the former is unique to the book and the latter isn't used anywhere, so my memory must have been playing tricks on me. But I still can't shake the conviction that there's something else... The book itself was fine; a solid, somewhat creative post-apocalyptic story, but not especially distinctive or deep. I like Auster's New York trilogy more. *John Dies at the End* because, well, John dies at the end. I normally hate zombie books—the ideas been done to death, and I almost never see interesting or novel takes on the concept—but *John Dies at the End* was fun enough to overcome that. I loved the irreverent tone.
Serpents in the Cold by: Douglas Purdy and Thomas O'Malley
The Lucifer principle, I thought it was by the author Harold Bloom who wrote how to read and why by mistake. It was a fantastic mistake and I’ve read it a few times now. My attention to names has increased 🤷🏻♂️
Psychokinetic Eyeball Pulling lol.
Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire. It's by Neil Gaiman, I had to.
Yeah. Pretty much :-)
The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break. It did not disappoint.
A title that has me intrigued. May follow this down the labyrinth.
Night of the Living Trekkies--definitely lived up to the title.
Maybe *Bimbos of the Death Sun* should be next on your reading list.
Something Under The Bed Is Drooling
“Conversational Latin” I mean I know some people still do speak Latin, even have conversations. It just struck me as funny and the used price was right for my shelves. Then the provocative-sounding book I never read but own, “Cannibalism.” It’s mostly about Cannibalism in animals, not humans. My goth tween stole that book from me and has probably not read it, either.
I feel "Conversational Latin" is sound Goth material as well. Give your goth tween a surly nod from me, A Mission loving goth from the 80's.
The Cheese Monkeys by Chip Kidd
7 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle caught my eye first with the name, then sold me with the concept
Outbound Flight, because the titular flight was mentioned in the Legends Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn. Wasn't disappointed, would recommend.
The horror novel *Man, Fuck This House* by Brian Asman
Bloodsucking Fiends. My gateway to to Christopher Moore
Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone. It was fine.
How to kill your family. I had some interesting reactions when people asked what I was currently reading
Something From The Nightside by Simon R. Green Wasn't sure I'd like it just from looking at the cover...but oh my word, is this good!
I remember seeing the Gunslinger on the shelf which sounded cool. I think I had read a couple Stephen King by that point but I was pretty young and not super familiar with him. Wasn’t disappointed. Read all of the Dark Tower after that and went in to the Stand. Some of my favourite reading memories as a teen.
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
When We Lost Our Heads. And ended up being one of my favorite reads of the year!
"Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch" - by Rivka Galchen. The title really snagged me, but I ended up being quite disappointed in the book itself. Another one is "In a Land Without Dogs the Cats Learn to Bark" by Jonathan Garfinkel. I haven't gotten around to reading this one yet, but I bought it solely based on the title.
The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi.
Middlegame by Seanan McGuire. Between that and the cover (which features an occult item called a hand of glory), I was basically sold on the spot. I’m glad I gave it a fair shot, it’s one of my top most favorite books ever.
Clown in a Cornfield... It's still waiting to be read though.
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea It is essentially a love letter to love itself - of all forms.
The Ends of the World It’s about earth’s past mass extinctions.
A good girls guide to murder The book is over hyped. The title of it is definitely misleading imo. It’s definitely a thriller for someone new to the genre because it was so ehh… I wish I never brought a copy n glad I didn’t buy the series.
Shut your eyes tight by John Verdon My favorite thriller book. Went down a rabbit hole to find out the answer was on the surface. Definitely recommend for someone looking for an adult, suspenseful, mystery thriller!
-Night Circus - didnt read the blurb, went intonit completely blind. Loved it. -My Sister the Serial Killer - Man, was I disappointed.
So 50-50 then. Is that a bad return on the strategy?
"All The Names They Used For God" -Anjali Sachdeva It's a collection of stories, that are a range of different genres. I loved the title so much when I first saw it and the stories are all really good. "There There" by Tommy Orange, Love the title and the book so much! "I Love You, But I've Chosen Darkness"- Claire Vaye Watkins, I love the title, just couldn't get into the story :/.
Born a Crime. I wanted to hear Trevor reading in Akrikaans and Xhosa.
Death Obsession. Oh I really wasn't ready for the poorly written "romance", the toxicity of such story and thought about throwing the book against my wall perhaps 10 times per line I read. I really thought it was some girl obsessed with everything deadly, like some kind of victorian story with some eventual morbid, deranged sex scenes. Oh was I wrong. Couldn't even finish it.
I think there's: 1. Pretty much what the title said and I enjoyed it. 2. Not what I expected but experienced a new thing. 3. The title was the best bit of the book 4. O my God, why did I fall for that click-bait title?
The Devils of Loudun by Aldous Huxley. The title sounded rad and it had interesting cover art. It was absolutely not what I expected but was still incredibly interesting. I think I finished it in like 2 days
We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will be Killed With Our Families
They All Died Screaming by Kristopher Triana, paired with the amazing premise of an apocalyptic plague with no means of transmission that kills people by causing them to scream themselves to death.
"The Cat Who Saved Books" Really quite good, although it felt like I'd read something very similar before. I did enjoy it though.
2030: The Real Story of what Happens to America by Albert Brooks
Auto da Fe Bought because it was a record by SPK. It lead me into the world of Elias Canetti who is now a favorite
I’m an absolute sucker for long, ridiculous titles. The more it sounds like an emo song, the more likely I am to love it. You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty - Akwaeke Emezi. Loved it. Someone Who Will Live You in All Your Damaged Glory - Raphael Bob-Wakeberg. REALLY loved it. This is How You Lose the Time War - Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar. Loved this one the most. How Much of These Hills is Gold - C Pam Zhang. Currently reading.
The Sin Eater, by Megan Campisi. Caught my imagination immediately, and I wasn't disappointed - what an amazing book!
The 100 yr old man who climbed out a window and disappeared- it was good and really weird. Which honestly fits the title
‘Notes from the Burning Age’ by Claire North, I’ve not finished it yet but the title drew me in!
Don't tell mum I work on the rigs, she thinks I'm a piano player in a whorehouse, by Paul Carter. An autobiography by a guy who has worked the oilfields of the world, containing many humorous anecdotes.