Let’s Talk Bookish: Do Book Titles Matter?

Hey, everyone! I hope you’re all doing well. I am very, very excited about some bookish things, mainly the fact that Rick Riordan is releasing two books in 2023! He’s writing a novel for Nico di Angelo, The Sun and the Star, and a novel for the original PJO trio that takes place after The Heroes of Olympus, called The Chalice of the Gods. I need to reread the PJO series and The Trials of Apollo, so I can remember everything. Maybe I’ll do a binge read over winter break.

Moving on to today’s post! I am pretty sure this is the latest I have ever posted an LTB discussion.

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @ Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @ Book Nook Bits where we discuss various topics and share our opinions. Today’s topic is Do Book Titles Matter? (suggested by Hannah @ Hannah’s Library).

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How much do book titles matter?

Book titles matter a lot; they’re a huge part of marketing when it comes to advertising a book. People always talk about covers and their importance, and I think book titles are right up there with it. You want one that’s intriguing and will catch a reader’s interest. When I’m looking for books, titles are the first thing that will draw me to them. Covers usually come second because most of the time, I see the spine of the book first and then pull it out.

Have you ever read or not read a book based on the title alone?

I probably have read a book based on its title alone–not in my recent memory, but it’s definitely happened before. I’ve gone into books with practically no knowledge of what it was about. It made for good surprises, but I was a bit confused during the beginning. In most cases, the title will intrigue me and I’ll read the synopsis and decide whether I want to read it or not. I know I did that with Winterspell by Claire Legrand. I saw it at the library and thought the title was really pretty. So I took it out and decided to get it once I read the synopsis.

Do you like long or short book titles better?

I don’t really have a preference towards one of them. Longer titles can be a bit of a mouth full, but there are some really pretty titles that are on the longer side. Shorter titles fit a whole book’s description into just a few words, which I think is really cool. It depends on the book. Some work great with short titles, others work better with long ones.

Do you think the title has to connect to the story in some way?

It doesn’t have to, but most titles do. Otherwise, it’s not a very good title. If it doesn’t connect to the story, then why did the author title the book that way?

I love figuring out what book titles mean and how it connects to the story. Maybe a certain phrase is repeated a lot or the title connects to a place, event, or character in the story. For example, Gallant by V.E. Schwab, which is what I’m currently reading, refers to the house Gallant; The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas refers to the Sunbearer Trials that take place in the book; Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia refers to the protagonist, Eliza, and “her monsters” which could potentially intrigue someone.

What are some of your favorite book titles?

These are definitely not all of my favorite book titles, but some that came to mind.

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What do you think about book titles? Do they need to connect to the story?
What are some of your favorite titles?