Thread: Improve A Book Title By Removing The Last Letter Board: Oblivion / Ship of Fools.


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Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
I ws reminded of this on "Cabin Pressure", a BBC Radio comedy, and I present this as a Circus game.

The game is simple in concept, but suitable titles take some finding. Remember only the last character of the last word can be removed to transform the title to something different or amusing.

Only one each and don't anyone monopolise the thread with any work that may already have been done in cyberspace as the Hosts will surely kill it PDQ.

To start I give you: The Da Vinci Cod
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Tale of Peter Rabbi
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
Alice in Wonderlan -- a precocious young girl meets a gallery of weird characters on-line as she logs in for the first time.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
Albert Camus, The Strange

Probably fits Camus better than the original title.
 
Posted by Quinine (# 1668) on :
 
No Log

A psychological drama about an embattled couple, neither of whom wishes to admit it is their turn to go out to the woodshed.
 
Posted by Dafyd (# 5549) on :
 
Jane Austen, Mansfield Par.

A shy girl joins up at her relatives' golf club.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
Julia Child's classic on the raising of babies, The Way to Coo.
 
Posted by Bob Two-Owls (# 9680) on :
 
A tale of avian insanity, Far From The Madding Crow.
 
Posted by Hilda of Whitby (# 7341) on :
 
Proust's mystery novel set in fin de siecle Paris:

In search of lost Tim

[ 07. April 2013, 18:45: Message edited by: Hilda of Whitby ]
 
Posted by Pigwidgeon (# 10192) on :
 
Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boa - the inspiration for "La Cage Aux Folles."
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
"Gone With the Win" - how a secretary named Scarlet absconded with the office lottery syndicate's jackpot, and the story of her extravagant lifestyle.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
Gone With The Win A mediocre football team does not reap the fabulous benefits the players anticipated from a fluke win.
 
Posted by Smudgie (# 2716) on :
 
198
The cautionary tale of the last bus to Croydon.
 
Posted by Starbug (# 15917) on :
 
Miser by Stephen King

The story of a spendthrift novelist
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Listen to the War

Rod McKuen finds peace and poetry on the battlefield.
 
Posted by earrings (# 13306) on :
 
Cancer War Solzhenitsyn
an account of the research effort into finding a cure for cancer
 
Posted by Dafyd (# 5549) on :
 
Brighton Roc A giant eagle goes to the seaside and wonders whether it's damned.
 
Posted by comet (# 10353) on :
 
The Return of the Kin

A Middle-Earth family reunion.
 
Posted by comet (# 10353) on :
 
ooh ooh!

The Silver Chai

Narnian tea time!
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
Invisible Ma

Ralph Ellison loses his mother but makes a name for himself.
 
Posted by StevHep (# 17198) on :
 
Honest to Go

Anglican Bishop realises he is an atheist and seeks media career instead.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
Crime and Punishmen
Of course, women are perfectly innocent [Razz]
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Cold Comfort Far - a novel of Antarctic exploration.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
Why be happy when you could be Norma? , Jeanette Winterson: a sympathetic portrait of the ups and downs of marriage to John Major
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
That's brilliant!

My own 'umble offring is from Jules Verne: The First Men in the Moo - intrepid explorers decide to examine bovine digestive systems from the inside.

[ 07. April 2013, 22:41: Message edited by: Baptist Trainfan ]
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Emm - biography of a doughty Cockney char.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Thin Ma -- the mystery surrounding the death of a woman suffering from anorexia is solved by her children.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
From my textbook shelf—French for Readin.

Français pour des ploucs (French for Rednecks) indeed.
 
Posted by Pulsator Organorum Ineptus (# 2515) on :
 
Full Moo - in which the Earl of Emsworth rears the fattest cow in the county.
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
A Brief History of Tim

The successor to Mr Tompkins in Paperback?
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
Accidental Her

Dustin Hoffman rescues survivors of a plane crash, but due to an unusual mix-up at the hospital, wakes up having undergone a sex-change operation. After struggling with gender identity for the bulk of the movie, he falls in love with Andy Garcia and decides to live life as a woman.
 
Posted by piglet (# 11803) on :
 
Animal Far: a guide to long-distance wildlife photography by George Orwell
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Sh

Rider Haggard's plea for quiet.

(aside to Comet: Silver Chai is inspired.)
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
A Man for All Season: a story about a man who refuses to endorse the King's plan to have a different wife each month, insisting that each marriage last for a full 3-month season.
 
Posted by Pigwidgeon (# 10192) on :
 
The Naked and the DEA Norman Mailer's novel about strippers in the Drug Enforcement Administration.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
The Pear: A [very] short story by John Steinbeck about greed triggered by the discovery of a perfect pear.
 
Posted by comet (# 10353) on :
 
my kids and I are having fun with this. Their contributions:

A Wrinkle in Tim
Tim considers botox treatments

followed by:
A Swiftly Tilting Plane
the moments before the crash...
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
The Murder Roo - A kangaroo and his sidekick investigate a murder.
 
Posted by comet (# 10353) on :
 
almost forgot:
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fir

Harry competes for a wooden cup
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
There's always Graham Greene's classic tale of polygamy in a lesbian family: The Third Ma

[ 08. April 2013, 02:44: Message edited by: Leorning Cniht ]
 
Posted by Lamb Chopped (# 5528) on :
 
of mice and me -- a tail of my kitchen lately.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Of Mice and Me: a drama about a man who has devoted himself to protecting his simple-minded gentle-giant friend, but who finds the greatest challenge comes from his own alter ego.

[oops - cross-posted (sorry Lamb Chopped [Hot and Hormonal] )]

[ 08. April 2013, 03:09: Message edited by: W Hyatt ]
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Inspired by some above:

Glimpses of the Moo - Edmund Crispin hunts an elusive cow.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
Carlos Fuentes, A Change of Ski—an old gringo gets into an accident and breaks one of his father's cherished wooden skis, then goes on an epic quest to find a replacement.

Looking at my copy of Borges' Collected Fictions (hi Kelly!)...
The Library of Babe—pig writes a lot of books. A lot of books. Somehow less surreal than the original.
Three Versons of Juda—why don't you try 2 Kings for that?
A Dialog Between Dead Me—very short indeed, even for somebody else's dream.
Borges and —And what, exactly? Are we supposed to draw something from this incomplete sentence? Is this a commentary on the sudden end to life? Are we going to find the answer five stories later in an oblique reference we hardly even notice? And what exactly is the deal with the blind tigers stuck in an infinite labyrinth built in Shakespeare section of the library? Is it something to do with the Minotaur/Argentine national heroes/your great-grandfather/Ramon Llull?
The Elderly Lad—immaturity is forever. Let's party!
 
Posted by lilBuddha (# 14333) on :
 
Great Expectation from the abridged Dickens

Birdson Avian coming of age tale

The Shadow of the Win The dark side of fortune

Life of P The autobiography of the 16th letter

Dun The epic tale of a hill fort
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
The Wizard of O

Nothing like Histoire d'O by Pauline Réage. Had it been, the 'Friends of Dorothy' would have been something completely different.
 
Posted by StevHep (# 17198) on :
 
The Imitation of Chris

How the example of Mr Huhne led to an epidemic of spouses taking penalty points for each other until....
 
Posted by StevHep (# 17198) on :
 
The Bhagavad Git

Story of a bad tempered Indian holy man.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
John Keay's love affair with an evil character from The Eagle comic:

Mad about the Mekon
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
Joseph Heller's novel about the craziness of war: Catch 2.

James Joyce: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ma: A woman with many, many, many children (she's Irish, after all!) tries to find time to write novels, paint pictures, and dance.

J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy about a very small creature and how he spends his leisure time: "The Hobbi".

Stephen King's apocalyptic vision of the end times of one man: "The Stan".

Stephen King's story about a spooky hotel in the middle of nowhere, an alcoholic dad with a very bad temper, psychic horror and destruction written with a bad Southern accent: "The Shinin".
 
Posted by PeteC (# 10422) on :
 
The New St Joseph Sunday Missa - short and to the point.

[Biased]
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by StevHep:
The Bhagavad Git

Story of a bad tempered Indian holy man.

[Killing me] [Overused]

Inspired by Baptist Trainfan, Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moo: a study of the transmission of nutrients in the bovine grazing process.

[ 08. April 2013, 09:19: Message edited by: Albertus ]
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
Love it! [Overused]
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
What about that well-known Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Naval Treat in which Holmes and Watson wonder just who is paying for high-ranking officers to be wined and dined in such a lavish fashion at a time of budgetary restraint? They discover that a strange alliance between the Mafia and Russian oligarchy lies behind it - linked to an Old Etonian connection.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
You're really flying today!
 
Posted by Hawk (# 14289) on :
 
Terry Pratchett's The Colour of Magi, a rip-rouring farce of the Nativity story where the three Magi face racism as they follow the Star of Bethlehem across the Deep South.
 
Posted by Hawk (# 14289) on :
 
And Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Specie, a historical treatise on the evolution of coins as a form of currency.
 
Posted by Gwai (# 11076) on :
 
Dun
Frank Herbert's dry tale of the desert. Eventually the lead character goes so crazy staring at that damn monochromatic sand that he imagines he is some sort of worm.
 
Posted by Earwig (# 12057) on :
 
Watership Dow

A group of intrepid rabbits take their first steps in the stock market.
 
Posted by Moo (# 107) on :
 
Leave Her to Heave

She's very seasick.

Moo
 
Posted by Chorister (# 473) on :
 
Geraldine Brooks People of the Boo, a story about a children's entertainment enterprise, simultaneously keeping young children from getting bored and scaring the timid.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
Angle of Repos
About people who have quit making their car payments
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
To be topical, and at the risk of souring the tine of this thread,
Margaret Thatcher: the Downing Street Year. (Might've improved the book: would almost certainly have improved the twentieth century.)
 
Posted by Chorister (# 473) on :
 
Melvyn Bragg Remember M

Bragg reminisces about his favourite James Bond character.
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
Fahrenheit 45 a learned symposium by rather old-fashioned meteorologists explaining just why global warming has given us the coldest winter in years.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
How about some Bible books?

Hose -- The prophet who wore sheer tights

Rut -- Adventures of a breeding animal

Mica -- The prophet who was a flake

Mar -- The gospel writer who ruined everything he touched
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
Somehow Mein Kamp doesn't sound half so threatening.
 
Posted by Smudgie (# 2716) on :
 
I love this thread... though my bookcases seem to be proving rather unhelpful in providing suitable candidates for it.

Other people seem to be able to think of several in a row. But it leaves us poor unimaginative folks reeling. So can we please keep it to one book title per post, as per the OP, so that everyone gets a fair crack of the whip.

Thank you muchly.

Smudgie (with a wave of a hostly kipper)
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Righty-o, Smudgie!

.

The Waste LAN -- T.S. Eliot's epic, book-length poem about superfluous ethernet cables.
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
"Far From the Madding Crow". A 19th century novel about a group of friends who go out for a summer picnic and have their lives irrevocably changed by an angry bird.
 
Posted by Starbug (# 15917) on :
 
The Running Ma - Stephen King's story of a mother who enrols in the ultimate reality show in order to keep fit
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
A Clockwork Orang

A prequel to I, Robot, featuring a mechanical ape.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Spy Who Loved M -- James Bond hits for the other team just once.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
The Ring and the Boo - mildly scary take on Tolkien.
 
Posted by jbohn (# 8753) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Sioni Sais:
Somehow Mein Kamp doesn't sound half so threatening.

And some how it brings us back to "Three Men in a Boa" [Biased]


The Audacity of Hop - Barack Obama's stirring tale of a little bunny that never gave up.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
The Flying In - novel about an obsessive plane spotter.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Cricket on the Heart -- Dickens teams up with Poe for this charming Christmas horror novella
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
The French Lieutenant's Woma A touching story of a soldier and his pet python.
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
Mansfield Par a thrilling golfing saga from the East Midlands. Will Mr. D'Arcy manage a hole-in-one or will Emma end up in the rough at the tenth?
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
Back to Borges:
The House of Asterio, a take on the myth of Theseus and the Boombox.
 
Posted by churchgeek (# 5557) on :
 
Shakespeare the gender-bender: King Lea
 
Posted by Hart (# 4991) on :
 
William Faulkner -- The Sound and the Fur.
Classic novel about the moral decay of the frozen North..
 
Posted by Lamb Chopped (# 5528) on :
 
Cat on a Hot Tin 'Roo

The mind boggles...
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The World According to Gar

Our planet home as seen through the eyes of a long, skinny fish

[ 09. April 2013, 03:16: Message edited by: mousethief ]
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Lady Chatterley's Love: a D. H. Lawrence novel about a woman whose frustration with her husband's paralysis prompts her to secretly pursue her passion of collecting fine art.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Peter Pa

The dad who never grew up.
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
Out of the Silent Plane (C.S. Lewis) - traumatised passengers in Terminal Five recount their distress after the failure of the in-flight entertainment system on their journey from Oz.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
The Kraken Wake His friends hold a party after the Kraken dies.
 
Posted by Yorick (# 12169) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Moo:
Leave Her to Heave

She's very seasick.

Moo

[Killing me]
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Lucky Ji - social mishaps of a young Chinese academic. (And by the same author: Take a Girl Like Yo)
 
Posted by Marvin the Martian (# 4360) on :
 
Stephen King's I

A tender tale of one clown's search for identity in a world that does not understand.
 
Posted by Yorick (# 12169) on :
 
The BF. Roald Dahl.

A touching fairytale about an enormous benevolent boyfriend.
 
Posted by Yorick (# 12169) on :
 
The Ilia. ~Homer.

Epic poem about the greatest bones of the pelvis.
 
Posted by Marvin the Martian (# 4360) on :
 
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrob

The leaders of Narnia's warring factions put their differences aside in order to investigate a hospital burglary.
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by mousethief:
How about some Bible books?

Hose -- The prophet who wore sheer tights

Rut -- Adventures of a breeding animal

Mica -- The prophet who was a flake

Mar -- The gospel writer who ruined everything he touched

Luk The gospel writer who scored well on the stock market and with the money changers in the temple.

Proverb Written by a bunch of grammarians who believed the Word was a Verb and was a professional, to boot.
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
The last book (thank you, Jesus!) of the Twilight series: Breaking Daw about a female tween and her vampire lover who travel around the world wrecking musical equipment in recording studios.

*DAW: Digital Audio Workstation
 
Posted by Hart (# 4991) on :
 
Wilkie Collins -- The Woman in Whit. A woman trapped in a very small somewhat indeterminate something. (Didn't sell well; too vague).

[ 09. April 2013, 12:44: Message edited by: Hart ]
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
CP Snow's commentary on the early atomic age obviously causes significant genetic mutation in The New Me.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
And one in which Snow's contemporary and associate, William Cooper, discusses his fascination with pith helmets: The Ever-interesting Topi

(I suspect that our bookshelves have substantially similar contexts, Baptist Trainfain.)
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
Sorry to disappoint you, but I've never heard of William Cooper!

What you may not have realised is that A E Housman once wrote an opera called A Shropshire La but it bombed as it was ffelt to be rather monotonous. ("Doh!" says Homer Simpson).

(Codefi. —A)

[ 09. April 2013, 14:12: Message edited by: Ariston ]
 
Posted by Marvin the Martian (# 4360) on :
 
The Lovely Bone

Gay porn.

[ 09. April 2013, 14:08: Message edited by: Marvin the Martian ]
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
The Davinci Cod The fine, fine art of fish & chips.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Macbet the rise and fall of a Scottish bookie.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Baptist Trainfan:
Sorry to disappoint you, but I've never heard of William Cooper!


Much overlooked: but Scenes from Provincial Life (1950) is reckoned to be really the daddy of those 1950s provincial realist novels like Room at the Top (NB I realise that this may or may not be a recommendation.... ). Like Snow, a scientific civil servant, and I believe they worked together at one point. The reference is to The Ever-interesting Topic, a novel about sex education in a public school.

Anyway, back to the game. Capita by Karl Marx, a scarily accurate work predicting the rise of global outsourcing corporations.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Völsunga Sag

Norse gods and their beer guts
 
Posted by Marvin the Martian (# 4360) on :
 
Eats, Shoots and Leave

Gramatically-incorrect grammatical pedantry.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Mystery of Edwin Droo -- Strange tale of a young man who died before he could finish signing his name.
 
Posted by Chorister (# 473) on :
 
Libby Purves: Passing G

A steamy novel of seduction, to the G-spot and beyond...
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
The Forsyte Sag - ennui and depression grip the nation as they face episode 746 of an apparently never-ending Sunday evening drama in the days before videos and satellite TV. Why, folk might even be forced to go to Evensong again!
 
Posted by Quinine (# 1668) on :
 
Wolf Hal

Mantel's surprise revelation of why Henry VIII avoided the full moon.
 
Posted by no prophet (# 15560) on :
 
Life of P, sequel to Life of O, both being sex manuals.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Jaw: A great white shark loses its lower jaw to the propeller on a fishing boat and the local townspeople rally to save and adopt it, giving it a nickname for its one remaining jaw.

[ 09. April 2013, 17:20: Message edited by: W Hyatt ]
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
Cheaper by the Doze
Why taking naps is good for you, and costs so little.
 
Posted by LeRoc (# 3216) on :
 
And of course, there is the second book of the Bible, Number.

The number in question seems to be 42, but nobody seems to know the question to which it is an answer.
 
Posted by Gwai (# 11076) on :
 
White Fan The tale of White Fan, a pampered lap dog who ends up in the wilderness.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Art of Wa

Classic Chinese text on getting your way in life through whingeing
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
King Solomon's Mine Kiss and tell autobiography of the Queen of Sheba.

[ 09. April 2013, 18:22: Message edited by: Firenze ]
 
Posted by LeRoc (# 3216) on :
 
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galax

At least when you encounter a beetleweed while you're thumbing your way through the country, you'll know all about it!
 
Posted by StevHep (# 17198) on :
 
The Road to Wigan Pie

George Orwell explains putting on all that extra weight.
 
Posted by ArachnidinElmet (# 17346) on :
 
Gah! Everytime I check this thread someone's nicked me book. Anyway, after a bit of thinking:

Watchme

The story of a voyeuristic superhero.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Tao te Chin

Classic Chinese philosophy about the way of the beard.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Little Me Louisa Alcott's autobiography
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
In a similar vein...

I Chin

First of the Claudius' Body Parts series.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Old Man and the Se -- inspirational saga of an old Cuban fisherman's struggle to master Spanish reflexive pronouns.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Spy who loved M

The till now untold story of the Bond/Boss relationship
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Contac

Carl Sagan's tale of time-release alien allergy medications.
 
Posted by LeRoc (# 3216) on :
 
The Invisible Ma

Just when you thought that you could put your hand in the buscuit tin... there she is!
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Riceyman Step The story of the Edwardian precursor of gangnam style.
 
Posted by The Rogue (# 2275) on :
 
I well remember the comic I read as a child. The Bean often explored the effect the title product had on certain bodily functions.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
[Killing me]

. by Thomas Pynchon
 
Posted by lilBuddha (# 14333) on :
 
The Rights of Ma
The tale of the struggles of a mother and suffragette.
 
Posted by Dafyd (# 5549) on :
 
The Golden Bow There were archers; there was a certain significant sense of as it might be competition between them. There was some impression of rivalry between two of the contestants, whose relations seemed redolent of matrimony over an object whose shape and hue struck the onlooker as a bow made of gold and that those concerned treated with an attitude that it might be a prize.
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
Another with biblical connections, The Book of Jo with its companions, The Book of Am, The Book of Bet and The Book of Me.

(all the above are sequels to Little Wome, but you knew that)
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Quick and the DEA

On the lam from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
 
Posted by Athrawes (# 9594) on :
 
The Tao of Poo - you really do not want to know. Really.
 
Posted by jedijudy (# 333) on :
 
And one that many of us own, the Telephone Boo. Used by certain adolescents to make prank calls.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Planet of the Ape: An inspiring story about space travelers befriending a desparately lonely ape who is the last surviving animal on his planet.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
City of Go: a psychological thriller set during the 1988 Ing Cup exploring the nature of human interactions, the search for God, and the meaning of happiness.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
Confession -- St. Augustine's how-to book for receiving the sacrament of penance (oops, I mean reconciliation).
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Pelican Brie

Cheesemaking intrigue among the rare lactating birds of France.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
The Second Se, a guide to the history and development of alternate forms of Latin reflexive pronouns. Only of interest to medieval linguists—say hi to the book booth folks at Kazoo next month for me!
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Seven Days in Ma

A newborn remembers its last week in the womb
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
The Man Who Was Thursda Memoir of Mr Thur, Senior.
 
Posted by Cara (# 16966) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Firenze:
[qb] King Solomon's Mine Kiss and tell autobiography of the Queen of Sheba

[Overused]

And so many other chuckles in this thread, which I've just discovered.
Hard to beat what's been done.


Norwegian Woo

Murakami takes an unusual excursus into the courtship rituals of some Scandinavians.

[ 10. April 2013, 13:18: Message edited by: Cara ]
 
Posted by Dafyd (# 5549) on :
 
La Belle Dame Sans Merc Poem about a knight who meets a fairy lover and then nicks her car.
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
The Jewel in the Crow - ornithological thievery on a sunny day causes financial palpitations in the Antwerp diamond markets.
 
Posted by Stetson (# 9597) on :
 
Gone With The Win-- Frustrated office-worker flips his boss the middle finger after checking the lottery announcements.

And the sequel...

The Return Of The Kin-- Our lucky hero suddenly finds himself extremely popular with relatives who haven't spoken to him in years.

[ 10. April 2013, 15:18: Message edited by: Stetson ]
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Imitation of Chris -- daily devotional readings for those who wish they could be just like the "boy next door."
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Apocalypse No: A feel-good story about the efforts of anti-war protestors trying to end the Vietnam War.
 
Posted by ArachnidinElmet (# 17346) on :
 
The Wasp Factor Exposé of the insect-centred talent contest.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Ben Hu

Life of the famous Chinese charioteer at the time of Confucius.
 
Posted by Hart (# 4991) on :
 
Kafka -- The Tria

Intrigue and frustration abound as Congress debates reauthorization of the Terrorism Reduction Insurance At.
 
Posted by StevHep (# 17198) on :
 
dead men walkin

Zombie walk-in centre organised by concerned nun.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Bridges of Madison Count

Highway overpasses in this midwestern capital city come alive and learn mathematics.
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
The L-Shaped Roo

With their long feet I suppose they are a little L-shaped.
 
Posted by Chorister (# 473) on :
 
Danielle Steel The Gif - set in 1950s America, where a girl is accidentally transported into the future in the form of a computer graphic.
 
Posted by Sandemaniac (# 12829) on :
 
The Fall of ROM by Michael Curtis Ford

As all computers crash...

AG
 
Posted by churchgeek (# 5557) on :
 
Thomas Merton's only foray into science fiction, The New Ma is a mystery story in which a child wakes up absolutely certain his mother has been replaced. Just the night before, she wasn't a brunette, or six feet tall, or a robot, like she is this morning. But how can little Johnny prove his case to all the disbelieving adults in his life?
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Tono Bunga The inside story of the Berlusconi years.
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
Virgin Plane - a biography of Richard Branson, by Poul Anderson
 
Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :
 
The Naked Su - Isaac Asimov's first foray into robot porn.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Les Miserable

Lester was always very sad. The Revolution only made it worse.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
A Journey to the Center of the 'eart: An unpublished manuscript by Jules Verne about a Cockney woman reflecting on her close, but tumultuous relationship with her mother. The failed attempt by the author to break out from his established genre led to one of literature's least known cases of serendipity when the editor's rejection letter gave Verne the idea for his subsequent, successful work. Verne's inspiration came from a typographical error introduced when the typist overheard the editor asking rhetorically "What on earth was he thinking?" at the very moment of typing the failed manuscript's title.
 
Posted by ChaliceGirl (# 13656) on :
 
Stephen King's I
It's all about me!
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by W Hyatt:
Jaw: A great white shark loses its lower jaw to the propeller on a fishing boat and the local townspeople rally to save and adopt it, giving it a nickname for its one remaining jaw.

This is brilliant! And f*cking hilarious! [Overused]
 
Posted by Starbug (# 15917) on :
 
The Green Mil -
a fascinating investigation into the effects of colour-coding when applied to metric measurements.
 
Posted by Earwig (# 12057) on :
 
Poe's tale of a terrifying nightclub: The Rave.
 
Posted by Earwig (# 12057) on :
 
Double post becasue I have a the sense of humour of a nine year old and can't resist...

The Drowning Poo
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
As You Like i Rather adulatory biography of Steve Jobs.
 
Posted by Jane R (# 331) on :
 
Jurassic Par The tale of a golf tournament on the most dangerous course in the world...
 
Posted by MSHB (# 9228) on :
 
The Book of Amo - in which a verb is fully conjugated

True Bloo - TV series based on books about vampires who live in the Australian outback, and a blonde waitress

Acts of the Apostle - well, we always knew it was mostly about St Paul....

[ 11. April 2013, 14:21: Message edited by: MSHB ]
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Psych: A young man keeps the memory of his mother alive by competing in the same athletic events as she did in her time.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Firenze:
Tono Bunga The inside story of the Berlusconi years.

[Overused]
 
Posted by Hart (# 4991) on :
 
E.B. White: Charlotte's we.

The story of a spider who discover first person plural forms.
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
On Going to Be - the non-existent Anthony Burgess reflecting on his upcoming transition into existence.

A Clockwork Orang - Burgess again. An account of his amazing discovery of William Paley's monkey. (I know we've already had this one, but couldn't resist!)

The Mimic Me - V.S. Naipaul's account of his illustrious acting career.
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
The Moon is Dow - John Steinbeck's incisive analysis of Wall Street's aggressive expansion (having already taken over planet Earth).
 
Posted by Al Eluia (# 864) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Athrawes:
The Tao of Poo - you really do not want to know. Really.

Or Winnie the Poo.

Updating Shakespeare: Romeo and Julie.
 
Posted by Jay-Emm (# 11411) on :
 
After becoming the injustices of 19th century society, our hero becomes a vigilante against those she deems responsible Crime and Punishmen.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Green Eggs and Ha

Laughing at spoiled food.
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
When She Was Goo - Philip Roth's creation epic, charting the formation of the first woman from the primordial sludge.

Who's Afraid of Virginia Wool? - The Commonwealth of Virginia's clothing manufacturers hit back in the face of declining sales. A must read!
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Five Children and I

Autobiography of a sand-fairy.
 
Posted by Gwai (# 11076) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by mousethief:
Five Children and I

Autobiography of a sand-fairy.

I seriously want to read that one. It would be a delightfully crabby piece.

Far from the Madding Crow Two farmers move to the city to get away from the annoying noises of the country.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Where the Wild Things Ar

Sail away with weird critter pirates. Arrrrr.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
The Fir: A John Grisham novel about a college graduate who buys a house and finds himself in a battle of wits with the evil fir tree in his backyard. "The Fir" was followed by its sequel, The Broke, in which the protagonist tries to reconstruct his life after he is left broke and unemployed as a result of his obsession with the tree.

[ 12. April 2013, 01:30: Message edited by: W Hyatt ]
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
198 The story of BBC Radio 4's AM (long wave) service.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
The Last of the Mohican: A colonial governor thinks he has seen the last of a Mohican chief when he persuades the chief to give up on his diplomatic campaign for fair treatment of his tribe.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
Our Tow -- A resident of the town of Grovers Corners receives insight into life, love and dreams from the tow truck driver summoned to the scene of an accident.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Bing - Rita Mae Brown writes about an old crooner.
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
The Potting She - Graham Greene's fascinating biography of a female snooker sensation.

The Spy's Bedside Boo - Greene again, recounting the bizarre tale of a secret agent's rather eccentric alarm clock.
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
A Dance to the Music of Tim - the story of a choreographer devising an intricate set of moves to an insistent and unvarying one-second rhythm. The book is endorsed by Accurist.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
Very good indeed.
And from that series: Books Do Furnish A Roo (or, the value of keeping a small library in your pet marsupial's pouch).

[ 12. April 2013, 14:37: Message edited by: Albertus ]
 
Posted by Earwig (# 12057) on :
 
A grisly tale of children discovering their father's mangled corpse, following an accident in a Welsh mining town.

The Remains of the Da
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
The Long Lavender Loo: John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee, "salvage consultant," finds himself once again in danger as the target of a murderous psychopath when a client persuades him to look for a stolen outhouse.

[ 12. April 2013, 15:27: Message edited by: W Hyatt ]
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
Bombs Away: The Story of a Bomber Tea - This is probably Steinbeck's most harrowing story. It was inspired by a visit to England, where he encountered, in a small quaint village in darkest Devon, a strange little tea shop offering customers a concoction that has been described as "a beverage with a vigorously expansive flavour: a drink which will - quite literally - enlarge your appreciation of life". Explosive stuff.
 
Posted by Baptist Trainfan (# 15128) on :
 
The Riddle of the Sand - Hercule Poirot encounters his hardest puzzle yet when a vial of coloured sand is found lying beside the corpse of a beautiful young lady. His investigations take him to Scarborough, Woolacombe and Leighton Buzzard before he realises that the perpetrator must have come from Alum Bay on the Isle of Wight.

Miss Marple - being English - would have got there far more quickly.
 
Posted by roybart (# 17357) on :
 
Portrait of a Lad Henry James's pioneering study of the world's first transexual.

Exit the Kin Ionescu's absurdist depiction of a family whose members vanish mysteriously, one by one, during the course of an end-of-summer reunion.

Gunga Di Plucky Princess Diana travels to India to bring comfort and publicity to oppressed water bearers.

Adam Bed First volume of George Eliot's beloved "Furniture Family" series for children.

Of Mice and Me Absorbing autobiography from one of the world's most eminent rodentologists.

The Sound and the Fur William Faulkner's memoir of a summer spent as an apprentice peltmonger in an especially noisy workshop.
 
Posted by Hedgehog (# 14125) on :
 
The Dain Curs. Dashiell Hammett's Continental Op deals with the descendants of the Hound of the Baskervilles.
 
Posted by Gextvedde (# 11084) on :
 
The Child in Tim

Ian McEwan's harrowing account of the first male birth.
 
Posted by Stetson (# 9597) on :
 
Nancy Dre

Publishers of girl-detective series try to reach out to a hipper audience, by having the character marry famous rapper.
 
Posted by Gextvedde (# 11084) on :
 
Casino Royal

Prince Charles visits Vegas and ends up with his head in a vice.
 
Posted by Starbug (# 15917) on :
 
It's All Goo

Gwyneth Paltrow's recipes don't always go to plan.
 
Posted by Pure Sunshine (# 11904) on :
 
With all the books about Tim (whoever he is), let's not forget his autobiography, A Brief History of Tim. 150 pages.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
This may explain some of his celebrity: A Wrinkle in Tim.
 
Posted by Jay-Emm (# 11411) on :
 
Three Men in a Boa.

Harris, George and J decide to spice up life with a river journey. They wish they had chosen the Thames.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Ilia

Tells the story of Helen: the face that launched a thousand hips.
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
Italo Svevo admits that materialism isn't for him in The Confessions of Zen.
 
Posted by piglet (# 11803) on :
 
How to Coo

Lessons in love from the Blessèd Delia.
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
I'll have a go!

V. S. Naipaul's The Enigma of Arriva .
This is his bitter, heart-felt account of waiting for a bus that never turns up. Or does it?

(Please do not sue me. I'm sure this bus company runs an excellent service!)
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Jungle Boo

Snakes, bears, tigers, etc. scare the shit out of Mowgli.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Death of a Pee - Ngaio Marsh thriller about urinary retention.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Two for the Doug

Janet Evanovich dedicates this two-part opus to Douglas Adams.
 
Posted by balaam (# 4543) on :
 
C S Lewis tells of his time as a glider pilot in Out of the Silent Plane.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Across the Nightingale Floo - Lian Hearn's tale of the problems of old chimneys.

[spelling again]

[ 13. April 2013, 09:06: Message edited by: Welease Woderwick ]
 
Posted by Mili (# 3254) on :
 
Charlie and the Chocolate Factor

Willy Wonka is killed during a violent Oompa Loompa uprising before he can tell Charlie the secret ingredient that makes his chocolate such a success. Charlie must negotiate with the Oompa Loompa Union to get the factory running again and persuade the Oompa Loompas to share Wonka's secret.
 
Posted by Mili (# 3254) on :
 
The World of Poo is a sequel to the earlier poo titles.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
Randy Rides Alon
A John Wayne Western. Plot description not available, sorry.
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
quote:
Plot description not available, sorry.
[Killing me] [Overused]

Taxi Drive and its companion, Easy Ride: slice-of-life stories that sold poorly in book stores, but did much better as movie adaptations, especially when they managed to tack on "R" ratings at the end.

[ 14. April 2013, 02:55: Message edited by: W Hyatt ]
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Twelve Days of Christma by Trisha Ashley.

Mary's story of the journey to Bethlehem and its aftermath. Riveting, if grammatically challenged.
 
Posted by Starbug (# 15917) on :
 
Then Again, Maybe I Won

Confessions of a teenage lottery winner, by Judy Blume
 
Posted by Stetson (# 9597) on :
 
Mary Poppin'

Colloquial account of Mary's experiences binging on recreational pharmaceuticals.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
The Velveteen Rabbi - novel of bad dressing in Golders Green.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin -- Strange tale of a Mississippi River fish with an oddly colored locomotive appendage.
 
Posted by loggats (# 17643) on :
 
Orland, Woolf's deconstructed guide to Glenn County drag queens.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
John Keay's definitive work on Pirate Talk - The Great Ar.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Hop on Po

Two young bears jump on a kung-fu panda while learning vocabulary.
 
Posted by Stetson (# 9597) on :
 
Quiet Flows The Do

A tranquil afternoon at the beauty salon.

The Lord God Made Them Al

A creationist defends his beliefs about the origin of animals, in the form of an open letter to his skeptical friend Al.

[ 14. April 2013, 17:43: Message edited by: Stetson ]
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
McElligott's Poo

A Seussian tale from before universal sewage treatment.
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
By Colette:

Cher and The Last of Cher

Read these two books and you'll learn all there is to know about the rise and fall of the X-Factor wannabe popster, Ms Cher Lloyd!

(SofF intellectuals: Who? Me: Exactly!)

[ 14. April 2013, 17:57: Message edited by: SvitlanaV2 ]
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
The Dirty Doze

A grimy cowboy falls asleep in the bathtub, and hilarity ensues.
 
Posted by piglet (# 11803) on :
 
Looking at D's collection of anthem books beside the computer, I notice

The Oxford Book of Carol.

Student reminiscences of Baroness Thatcher's daughter?

[ 15. April 2013, 01:43: Message edited by: piglet ]
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Unbroke

A downed Air Force lieutenant finds his way back to civilization, and he still has money in his checking account.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Njal's Sag - a Viking travels to India to find the perfect way to cook spinach.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Women Food and Go

Snacks at the ladies' pro tournament for the ancient Chinese board game.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Children of the Ra - Vyvyen Brendon's analysis of the mating habits of the well known Egyptian deity.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Dorothy L. Sayers's Busman's honeymoo

A strange tale of a bus driver and his bovine lady love, reminiscent of the sheep scene in All you wanted to know about sex, and were too afraid to ask. Ms Sayers is uninformative as to whether or not the beloved cow wears a suspender belt and fishnet stockings.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
[Hot and Hormonal] I mixed up movies & books - my last post. Sorry.
 
Posted by Stetson (# 9597) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Pearl B4 Swine:
[Hot and Hormonal] I mixed up movies & books - my last post. Sorry.

Actually, I think you can sneak that one in on a technicality.

The Dirty Dozen
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Tale of Peter Rabbi -- the madcap adventures of a learned Jewish scholar and teacher who imagined himself to be the first Pope.
 
Posted by Starbug (# 15917) on :
 
Carrie's Wa

WWII evacuation, as seen through the eyes of a stroppy teen.

[ 15. April 2013, 15:56: Message edited by: Starbug ]
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
Fiddler on the Roo: (comedy) a man tries to maintain his family's Jewish traditions while making the rounds on the Australian rodeo circuit.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Died in the Woo - Ngaio Marsh on the dangers of romance on a sheep farm in New Zealand.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
., by Thomas Pynchon. Because sometimes a title is just unneccessary.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
No Country for Old Me - a searing indictment of the ageism in modern Britain...
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
The Drowning Poo - tragedy strikes when the honeywagon fails to arrive

The Dead Poo - sequel to The Drowning Poo

Tickle M - a look at the lighter-side of the life of 007 and his chums in the Secret Service

Tor! Tor! Tor! - forever lost on Dartmoor

Jaw - bio-pic of an heroic maxill-facial surgeon anyone?

The Dee - an everyday story of quiet heroism among angling folk

[ 16. April 2013, 11:24: Message edited by: L'organist ]
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Love in the time of Choler - you can be angry and lovable...

And why not go Biblical???

Book of Rut anyone?

I Kin and II Kin
 
Posted by Jane R (# 331) on :
 
Watership Dow

A tale of bulls, bears and rabbits.
 
Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :
 
George Orwell, Coming up for AI ...nearly at the top of the fertility treatment waiting list!
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
...and by the same author The Road to Wigan Pie.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Tao of Poo

The scat that can be spoken is not the eternal scat.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Maybe the Moo - Armistead Maupin contemplates a Kerygmaina Host.
 
Posted by ExclamationMark (# 14715) on :
 
Animal Fart - the follow up to "Gone with the Wind"

[ 16. April 2013, 17:22: Message edited by: ExclamationMark ]
 
Posted by ExclamationMark (# 14715) on :
 
Oops sorry - not reading well today.

Animal Far - the follow up to Born Free
 
Posted by Smudgie (# 2716) on :
 
Just a gentle hostly reminder to keep your posts to a single book title each time rather than post several in a row. That way lots of people get to participate and your gems of wit get chance to sparkle in their own right rather than being obscured by quantity [Big Grin]

Smudgie
(Finishes wielding hostly kipper and decides it looks rather tasty. Hopefully she won't be needing it again)
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Witch Wee - Diana Wynne Jones on the power of urine in spells, potions, curses, etc.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
Ethan From - A man is suspected of mental derangement because he has moved house many times, and can't seem to remember where he lives, at the moment.
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
Jake's Thin - Well, Kingsley old chum, instead of waffling on about Jake's emaciated anatomy, why don't you give the poor blighter something to eat? I don't know... [Disappointed]
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Give Us This Da - Ronnie Delderfield talks about being adopted in the Welsh Valleys.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Emm

Jane Austen's tale of the first female printing apprentice and her search for love. A piece of ivory two inches wide was her first professional attempt, the ivory being supplied by an upstanding big game hunter who set the apprentice heart a-fluttering at first sight...
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
The Quiet America - One assumes Graham Greene didn't write this gentle and rustic tale in Times Square!
 
Posted by Stejjie (# 13941) on :
 
Disappointment with Go

In which Philip Yancey plays the ancient Chinese board game, but finds it not to his liking.
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
Gone with the WIn:

A discontented and unsuccessful casino player loses another game.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Mansfield Par - contentment for a Midlands golfer.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
The River Do - Mark Shand writes about a party on The Thames.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Three Men in a Boa - the ultimate in horror for ophidiophobics [Killing me]
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Of mice and me

John Steinbeck reflects on his boyhood obsession with the world of rodents.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Hemingway's Chai - Michael Palin reveals Ernest's love of the Indian drink.
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
[Killing me]
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
A Farewell to Arm - a moving account of an amputee coming to terms with life
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
A Dance to the Music of Tim - the story of a young tyro's rise to stardom in the era of the Big Bands
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
The Wind Singe - William Nicholson discusses the effect of desert wind on the complexion.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
There's always Mary Wesley's The Camomile Law
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
Let's not forget the Code of Canon La, a full guide to properly singing contrapuntal church music starting on the sixth of the key.

[ 21. April 2013, 04:39: Message edited by: Ariston ]
 
Posted by W Hyatt (# 14250) on :
 
The Racketee: John Grisham's novel about a man who manages to turn the tables on the mob when they target him in a protection racket.
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
Blithe Spirit: a book about a v. bland whisky
 
Posted by Timothy the Obscure (# 292) on :
 
Catch-2: The second in the series, in which Yossarian tries to get expelled from kindergarten and sent home, but is stymied by Miss Cathcart's rule that children who can't behave in class must stay in time-out until they can ask nicely to go home, thereby proving they can behave in class.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
The Mad of Buttermere
Melvyn Bragg's heart-wrenching account of the hidden sufferings of the mentally ill in one of the loveliest of the UK's National Parks. [Cool]
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The hose whisperer

Infinitely more scary than any Peeping Tom, this contemporary pervert frightens by the unearthly sounds he produces with a length of rubber tubing.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
... that great work on the papcy by Peter de Rosa
Vicars of Chris anyone?
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Death in the stock

Delia diversifies into whodunnits.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
The Da Vinci Cod -- Biologists investigating the appearance of dead fish in the River Seine become entwined in some very secret religious societies.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Fire from heave

Arthur Scargill recalls a life in the coalmines.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Cred
Melvyn Bragg's other great oeuvre
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
I know it was a film but...

30
because with CGI you'll never spot the odd 270...
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The left hand of Go

The sinsister side of games playing.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Return to the Star
( do not pass Go, do not collect £200)

von Däniken comes over all masterful...
 
Posted by Cara (# 16966) on :
 
The Cricket on the Heart ...

Why has a cricket taken up residence on a bull's heart in the butcher's shop of Mr Cleaverbodge? Charles Dickens shows us the significance of this little creature's choice.....
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Sign of Fou'

Sherlock Holmes investigates a mystery in an old style Scottish lock 'em up and throw away the key mental institution. Who is it leaving arcane, or insane, daubings on the walls?
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
Based on the popular TV show, Bill Pertwee's Dad's Arm depicts blood, flesh, bone and muscle in an unending battle to keep an old man's upper right limb from dropping off, ceasing up, aching and tingling, or growing otherwise weak and useless.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
While we're on a Sherlock Holmes tangent . . .

The Adventure of the Speckled Ban -- Holmes and Watson investigate the unforeseen consequences of a law forbidding all things multi-colored.
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
John Grisham's "The Clien" about a country singer who seeks legal help in suing her record company for continually misspelling her name: Patsy Cline
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
If this title has been mentioned already, my apologies...

"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fir"- Lord Voldemort's overly complicated plot to kill Harry Potter by serving enchanted fir tree juice served in a cursed goblet.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
I know its not a last letter but...

Sleepless in Settle

insomnia caused by proximity to famour national rail icon.
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
The Power of No

Eckhart Tolle on childrearing
 
Posted by Light User (# 14254) on :
 
No Badgers in My Woo - Phil Drabble explains how romantic courtship can work, even without the assistance of stripy omnivores.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Woman in Whit

Church based thriller as tongues of fire acquire a meaning even more immediate than that of the Gospel story....
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Diamonds are for Eve

James Bond explains that the secret of his success with "The ladies" is that they are genetically predisposed to like shiny things.
 
Posted by Cara (# 16966) on :
 
Gone with the Win

Margaret Mitchell triumphs at the poker game and disappears with the loot.
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
James Baldwin, The Fire Next, Tim! A step by step guide for scouts who are new to camping.

And by the same author: Giovanni's 'Roo . This is an account of a friendship between an Italian-Australian and a 6 ft tall marsupial.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
The Thief of Tim - a gritty story of child abduction
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Sweet Toot

Ian McEwan's secret agent isn't silent or deadly
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Chitty Chitty bang ban

Car gets jail sentence for inappropriate behaviour in parking lot.
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by jacobsen:
Chitty Chitty bang ban

Car gets jail sentence for inappropriate behaviour in parking lot.

[Killing me]
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
The Moor's Last Sig. Salman Rushdie

The Islamic equivalent of the Ship closes after one of the hosts writes a controversial book
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
Michael Drosnin, The Bible Cod . This study reveals the Bible's hidden piscine prophecies.
 
Posted by Boadicea Trott (# 9621) on :
 
Wilkie Collins' The Woman in Whit - a mysterious stranger, dressed completely inappropriately for Whitsun, makes a sudden appearance and causes liturgical chaos......
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
Another 'book of the film': Happy Fee . The novel is about a scheming fat cat lawyer. Its title is an example of a 'transferred epithet', because clearly it's the lawyer who's happy, rather than his (hefty) fee....
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
White Teet

Zadie Smith explores the perception that Bangladeshi immigrants to London sucked the Mother Country dry.
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Charles Had a Splurge on:
White Teet

Zadie Smith explores the perception that Bangladeshi immigrants to London sucked the Mother Country dry.

Oh, for ages I've been trying to think of something to say about 'White Teet'! Well done for coming up with something relevant and not at all vulgar!
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
Mein Kamp -- Adolph Hitler reminisces about summers spent in the woods.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Chicken Soup with Ric

Cookbook from the restaurant owned by the lead singer of the Cars.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Chicken soup for the sou


How to live on a dollar a day in Paris.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
The Wave
Virginia Woolf talks about 20th century hair-fashions [Biased]
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
Moby-Dic -- Yes, you can teach a killer whale to speak Latin.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Great Good Thin

A fairy-tale princess bakes an exemplary cracker.
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
The Maltese Falco

Dashiel Hammett's suspense novel about a young woman, a young man, and a singer of dubious talents as they star in a bargain basement video of "Amadeus".
 
Posted by The5thMary (# 12953) on :
 
The Thin Ma

The husband and wife detectives, Nick and Nora Charles and their dog, Diet Shasta try to solve a mystery of what happened to a good friend's fat. She WAS fat after she gave birth to six children and then attended a party, drank a lot, woke up in a strange bed and found that she only weighed 98 pounds. Hilarity and madcap gaiety ensue.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Church Explorer's Guid

How to be saved most economically in Lowland Scotland.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
can we stretch a point - seems too good to miss out on reading

Lord of the Lies
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Invisible Ma

Are you my mummy?
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
You had me at Hell Mhairi McFarlane
 
Posted by A.Pilgrim (# 15044) on :
 
And for a classical reference, taking a liberal definition of 'book'...
Oedipu

... the prequel, in which the central character explores the stage of Freudian psychosexual development prior to the Phallic Stage (which was covered in the better-known book), and demonstrates a clear lack of anal-retentiveness.
A.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Green, green my valley? No!

Richard Llewellyn laments the lack of restorative work in the coal dust desert which the valley of his youth became.
 
Posted by SvitlanaV2 (# 16967) on :
 
Delia Smith's How to Coo . Discover your inner pigeon.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The True Believe

Eric Hoffer explains why faithful spouses don't suspect their mates of infidelity.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Three men in a boa

Gay pride celebrates, albeit frugally, since they can't afford one each.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
The Six Wives of Henry VII

Antonia Fraser unearths startling new evidence which completely alters out views of the Tudor court and may have repercussions for the Crown today.
 
Posted by Pearl B4 Swine (# 11451) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by jacobsen:
Three men in a boa

Gay pride celebrates, albeit frugally, since they can't afford one each.

I like this a lot. But, my first take on it goes something like this:
A constrictor with three big lumps drags himself from drug store to drug store, searching for Tums.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Gay Pride celebration also seems to be somewhat select.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Treasure Is LAN

By spinning the gold into ethernet cables, Long John Silver is able to hide it in plain sight.
 
Posted by EtymologicalEvangelical (# 15091) on :
 
The Goodbye Loo

A rather gory story of the little room of no return, where you end up spending rather more than a penny!
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
The Fal

Albert Camus messes about on a Cornish River and sheds his existential angst.
 
Posted by Cara (# 16966) on :
 
The Loo of Youth

Alec Waugh looks back nostalgically at the little rooms of his younger days...

(credit to EE )

Oh whoops, it's not the last letter of the whole title.
Sheesh. Oh well.....

[ 16. May 2013, 13:20: Message edited by: Cara ]
 
Posted by Aravis (# 13824) on :
 
Out of the Silent Plane

CS Lewis learns hang-gliding.
 
Posted by Mudfrog (# 8116) on :
 
The Hobbi The story of one man's spare-time interest in learning to spell.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Devices and Desire

PD James' most unexpected book, showing an alarming in-depth knowledge of the Anne Summers catalogue [Snigger]
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Hunchback of Notre Dam

Quasimodo falls to his death from the top of the French hydroelectric project.
 
Posted by Touchstone (# 3560) on :
 
Frank Herbert's Dun

Adolescent aristo with a messiah complex is forced to leave his lush home world and live on a very unpleasant planet where everything is brown.
 
Posted by roybart (# 17357) on :
 
Les Miserable

Third and last novel in Victor Hugo's famed trilogy THE TRAVAILS OF LES. Sad conclusion to the tale of a young man, Les, who has devoted his life to the pursuit of sexual pleasure (Les In Lust)and great riches (Les and Mammon).

[ 16. May 2013, 20:59: Message edited by: roybart ]
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Sign of Fou

Sherlock Holmes goes crazy in French.
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Precious Ban

Gollum has a harelip and so isn't considered worthy to possess the One Ring.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Pelican Brie

John Grisham's thriller about a new kind of cheese.
 
Posted by roybart (# 17357) on :
 
Julia

"He was an Emperor. He was an Apostate. He was ... a woman." The true, uncensored version of Gore Vidal's novel of ancient Rome.
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Fantastic Mr Fo

Roald Dahl's tribute to Dario Fo, the Italian Nobel Laureate.
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
Charlie and the Chocolate Factor

Charlie doesn't get to see where Willy Wonka's confectionary is made, but gets fobbed off with his representative. Poor Charlie.

[ 17. May 2013, 23:02: Message edited by: Sioni Sais ]
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Cour -- A French cardiologist discovers at last the cause of His Majesty's chronic chest discomfort.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Blue Heave

Rabbi Blue tells the story of his stomach upset...
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Roger Hargreaves most controversial children's book

Mr. Bum
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Little Miss No Is!
So young, and so disenchanted with life, the universe and everything.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Of Mice and Me

Cage cleaner in a medical research facility tells all.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Diamonds are for Eve

Ian Fleming's admiration for attractive women reaches new heights.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Fathers and Son
Turgenev's examination of gay parenting in 19th century Russia. Original Title: Arkady Has Two Dads
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
(may I beg your indulgence for a first letter?)

Omen in Love

in fact, it suits the work rather better than DHL's original maybe? [Biased]
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
King Solomon's Mine

An argument erupts in the harem as to who gets to bed the monarch for the night.
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
May I also beg your indulgence to form a singular from a plural?

Bonfire of the Vanity -- A man wakes to find himself in a strange bedroom, and reacts by setting fire to the furnishings.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Know your own I
Eysenck moves from examining the airy uplands of intelligence to the deep murky swamps of the inner self.

[ 19. May 2013, 17:31: Message edited by: jacobsen ]
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
The Horse and his B.O.

Calormene stables can't compare with those in Narnia.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
At the Back of the North Win

George MacDonald examines how fairies determined the outcome of the American Civil War
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Peter and the Wol

In the book of Prokofiev's Children's Symphony, Christopher Robin invites a Russian boy to spend time with the feathered denizens of the Hundred Acre Wood.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Hide and See

A DIY guide to Voyeurism
 
Posted by Pooks (# 11425) on :
 
'A Room with a Vie'

Not by E M Foster, on how to make room for conflict.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Path to Rom

Hillaire Belloc explores the future shock involved in computing.
 
Posted by Wednesbury (# 14097) on :
 
The Girl Who Played With Fir

In which Lisbeth Salander retires from computer hacking and retreats to the Swedish forests.
 
Posted by St. Stephen the Stoned (# 9841) on :
 
Neil Gaiman's shocker, The Graveyard Boo.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fir
I suspect cleaning might prove so difficult it would be a health hazard [Snigger]
 
Posted by St. Stephen the Stoned (# 9841) on :
 
Much Ado About No Thin, the tale of an unsuccessful weightwatcher.
 
Posted by St. Stephen the Stoned (# 9841) on :
 
Across the River and into the Tree. The best of You've Been Framed.
 
Posted by AndyB (# 10186) on :
 
The Children of Me, in which PD James' hero Theo Farron finds an alternative way to solve the crisis caused by no children having been born for 16 years.
 
Posted by Pooks (# 11425) on :
 
The book of Hose from the Bible.

Spiritual guidance on how to get wet.
 
Posted by AndyB (# 10186) on :
 
What, nothing to do with tights and stockings?

There is always Yann Martel's The Life of P.
 
Posted by Pooks (# 11425) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by AndyB:
What, nothing to do with tights and stockings?

There is always Yann Martel's The Life of P.

Heh AndyB. That's because I am leaving the discussion on how to put tights and stockings on correctly to the book of Christopher Wright (not):

Old Testament Ethics for the People of Go
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Ender's Gam

The military recruits a gamer with shapely calves.
 
Posted by Pooks (# 11425) on :
 
Surprised by Hop

Military training manual - relating the effectiveness of shouting 'Boo!'.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Surprised by Jo

C.S.Lewis is pleasantly astonished by a previously mediocre student's exam result, and writes a book about it.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Red Ten

Menstruating biblical women play solitaire.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Divine Pit By Gerard Vann OB

Hell is Heaven in disguise....
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Dragonsinge

The Master Harper loses his hair.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
Dragon's Daw
Given the shortage of fire lizards, birds are taken on board...

[ 05. June 2013, 10:59: Message edited by: jacobsen ]
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Iceman Comet

Can the coldest superhero prevent the chunk of space debris from striking the Earth?
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by mousethief:
The Iceman Comet

That is very good indeed! Keep 'em coming.
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Book of Rut

Jane Hamilton explains what really happened in Boaz' bed.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Book of King

Steven gives the low-down on the rats which infest biblical lands, and how they influence religious thought. Fundies, beware!
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Norwegian Woo

College student Bjørn tries to win the love of a beautiful coed.
 
Posted by Gwai (# 11076) on :
 
Return of the Kin

Man was Bilbo Baggins glad to see Frodo again after all that time and travel!
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Inherit the Win

Financial advice for children of lottery winners
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
There ought to be a way to compile humorous threads of this nature and sell them as Kindle books (or paper books via e.g. Lulu), to support the Organ Fund.
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
The Girls of Slender Mean

Working out the averages on tiny dress sizes.
 
Posted by AndyB (# 10186) on :
 
The Bean
Rowan Atkinson takes over Bash Street.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
What about Zadie Smith's White Teet???
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
... and an enquiry from a German reader

The Bell Ja
 
Posted by Pooks (# 11425) on :
 
The Abolition of Ma

Prequel to 'Are You My Mother?'
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
Ender's Sag

Story of a gamer who wears his trousers beneath his buttocks.
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbi Judith Kerr.

He was Jewish, he was gay: he didn't stand a chance.
 
Posted by Kelly Alves (# 2522) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by mousethief:
There ought to be a way to compile humorous threads of this nature and sell them as Kindle books (or paper books via e.g. Lulu), to support the Organ Fund.

(maybe one book of all the parody titles and faux Amazon-type synopses and reviews?)
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Charles Had a Splurge on:
When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbi Judith Kerr.

He was Jewish, he was gay: he didn't stand a chance.

[Killing me] [Killing me] [Killing me]
[Overused] [Overused] [Overused]
 
Posted by jacobsen (# 14998) on :
 
In the psychiatrist's chai by Anthony Clare

Waiter, there's a client in my tea.
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
In a similar, but less sophisticated vein:

Typhoo Joseph Conrad's exploration of the tea rooms of England; a forerunner to The Rutles' Tragical History Tour
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
Mob Dick, a detective who investigates unruly crowds
 
Posted by Pooks (# 11425) on :
 
The Sasha Kagan Sweater Boo

On how to make a jumper!
 
Posted by mousethief (# 953) on :
 
The Last of the Win

What to do when your lottery money runs out
 
Posted by Charles Had a Splurge on (# 14140) on :
 
Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet
 


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