My criteria for what constitutes “extraordinary” might not agree with you but any title that pique my interest by just a few words is in fact, extraordinary.
Extraordinary book titles are compelling. They make you want to pick up the book and read the back blurb or in the more modern approach—they make you want to check out the Goodreads synopsis.
These titles below made me do that:
1
Strange the Dreamer
Laini Taylor
..is my first foray into the Laini Taylor world. I’m apprehensive of beautiful titles—they raise my expectations and often only to disappoint me in the end—Laini already had that against her. But I hate it even more when authors use weird first names for their characters to make their book title sound cool, “Strange” being an example. When I first read the title, “Strange the Dreamer” I was thinking something like: *eye-roll* Oh look the author thought she did something by naming her character “Strange”.
But I especially hate it when authors use too flowery a prose to build their story. I feel like in their effort to sound good, they end up verbose. Over-all, Laini had three points against her when I barely even begun the story. BUT. BUT! BUT!!!
Laini Taylor actually delivered and in spades too! She went beyond my expectations and casually swept me off my feet. When I finished the book, I became a fan. And that’s such an astounding revelation to me because finally, here is an author who proved all my prejudices wrong and handed my pompous a*s back to me on a silver platter.
Consider me humbled.
2
Daughter of Smoke & Bone
Laini Taylor
Laini Taylor is a master of words. Honestly, what have I been doing all these years sleeping on her talent? But I’m glad I finally caught up to her when she released Strange the Dreamer.
I wasn’t around when Daugher of Smoke & Bone was released but that title is sure to catch anyone’s attention or at least ask, “Daughter of what?” and I think that’s extraordinary.
3
Howl’s Moving castle
Diana Wynne Jones
Technically first saw this title as a movie but it doesn’t matter whether I saw it as a movie or a book first because either way, the title would catch my attention.
I mean… let’s break it down:
- Weird first name ✓
- Compelling Descriptive Words ✓
4
The Maze Runner
James Dashner
Again, saw this as a movie first but who wouldn’t wanna check out someone running *for* a maze? Is that an official job? A sport?
5
Make Something Up: Stories You Can’t Unread
Chuck Palahniuk
Heck, does this one even need an explanation? It says right there: “Stories you can’t unread”. Biggest bait of the century.
6
Illuminae
Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Sci-fi books representing. Illuminae is just an over-all fascinating word not commonly used in the ordinary life so naturally, it would set minds racing.
7
There’s Someone Inside Your House
Stephanie Perkins
When in doubt, use the spook factor.
8
A Thousand Boy Kisses
Tillie Cole
When still in dooubt, just put together cute words.
9
The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight
Jennifer E. Smith
Consider your target market. As a a hopeless romantic, this title appealed to me on a whole different level.
10
And because I can’t resist, here are honorable mentions:
To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
Jenny Han
As an emo young adult fresh outta college with no accurate perception of love, this may just be the book of my dreams.
By The River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept
Paulo Coelho
As an emo teenager who wants to look smart but didn’t actually wanna read anything substantive, this is perfect for me. It’s mainstream, it’s from a respected author and I didn’t wanna get left behind by all the people that have read The Alchemist.
Dot in the Universe
Lucy Ellman
A perfect title to get you bought in a second-hand bookstore. It ‘s from an unknown author so combine a really catchy phrase with cheap price then sold!
Bridge to Terabithia
Katherine Paterson
Anything ‘Bridge’ followed by an unknown world is a classic, sure fire way of getting noticed.
These next books I haven’t read but I included them for obvious reasons:
The Shape of Water
Daniel Kraus
Breaking the laws of the universe? of Science? Genius.
All the Light We Cannot See
Anthoney Doerr
Contrast is always beautiful and profound.
Thanks! I get a lot of exposure to books at my job, though not necessarily the ones I want to read. I also spend a lot of time reading book reviews online. Often I can’t actually get the books that interest me the most, but it still feels nice to read someone else’s analysis.
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Thanks so much for being here often and I see you a lot on Twitter too. 🙂 Do you mind if I ask what your job is?
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Sure, I don’t mind! I work at a public library. Not as a librarian, but as an assistant.
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I also love the title of “Strange the Dreamer,” but I put off reading it because I read some negative reviews. Maybe I should give it a shot after all!
Would you say an extraordinary title is different from a strange title? I’ve seen some titles that make me stop and look without making me want to read the book, like “Amish Vampires in Space.” That sounds different from your definition of extraordinary titles that capture your attention and draw you in. When I think of titles like that, I think of books like “The Astonishing Color of After.”
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I hope you get to reading it! 🙂 I think it’s a really nice book even if you’re someone who isn’t into young adult fantasy.
Good point! The beauty of the word “extraordinary” is that it can mean so many things. The titles you mentioned are definitely “extraordinary” and unique even if they don’t necessarily compel you to read them. If I knew those books existed, I would have it on the list too but my book shelf is pretty limited. I’m interested in your list though. Just from these two examples, you seem to know a lot of books from across all genres.
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