Added by Dierdre

on 15 Jul 2011 10:08

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Misleading Titles

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A few famous books whose titles suggest something very different from what they're actually about.

Suggestions welcome.

785

7.8

1. The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger

What I Think:

A heartwarming underdog story about a rural baseball team.

The Actual Plot:

Maladjusted, whiny teenager.

Dierdre's rating:

98

8.6

2. Gone with the Wind - Margaret Mitchell

What I Think:

A tornado destroys Scarlett O'Hara's Midwest home.

The Actual Plot:

The Civil War destroys Scarlett O'Hara's Southern plantation.

Dierdre's rating:

368

7.6

3. Of Mice And Men - John Steinbeck

What I Think:

Venn diagram detailing the similarities between mice and men.

The Actual Plot:

Migrant workers.

Dierdre's rating:

11

8

4. Men Without Women - Ernest Hemingway

What I Think:

A dystopian future world without women.

The Actual Plot:

A collection of short stories about men and their women.

555

7.4

5. Lord of the Flies - William Golding

What I Think:

The story of a bug king.

The Actual Plot:

Kids stuck on an island.

Dierdre's rating:

94

7.5

6. As I Lay Dying: The Corrected Text - William Faulkner

What I Think:

Addie Bundren's losing battle with illness.

The Actual Plot:

Bundren family's journey to bury their mother.

Dierdre's rating:

90

6.8

7. Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe

What I Think:

Anarchy--according to William Butler Yeats.

The Actual Plot:

Yams. Lots and lots of yams.

Dierdre's rating:

405

8.3

8. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

What I Think:

The life and times of a brilliant recluse.

The Actual Plot:

A Hispanic town.

1

2

9. The Living is Easy - Dorothy West

What I Think:

The living is easy.

The Actual Plot:

The living is not easy.

Dierdre's rating:

778

8

10. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

What I Think:

A nice hunting guide.

The Actual Plot:

The trial of an innocent black man--and the kids of the defense lawyer running around town.

Dierdre's rating:

306

8.5

11. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey

What I Think:

Bird migration patterns.

The Actual Plot:

Sexual frustration in an insane asylum.

Dierdre's rating:

39

7.4

12. The Jungle - Upton Sinclair

What I Think:

An adventure through a rainforest.

The Actual Plot:

The meat-packing industry.

Dierdre's rating:

303

7.7

13. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

What I Think:

Protecting pretty bells from rust.

The Actual Plot:

Bitches be crazy.

366

8.3

14. A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess

What I Think:

Eating oranges on the dot--every hour.

The Actual Plot:

Ultraviolence.

Dierdre's rating:

Added to

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Comments

Posted: 1 year, 8 months ago at Sep 21 12:07

GREAT LIST and quite funny with your interpretation of the titles! LOVE IT.

Posted: 1 year, 7 months ago at Sep 30 11:15

Hahaha! Awesome list! I also thought the same thing about no.s 1 and 8.

Posted: 1 year, 7 months ago at Oct 10 21:18

Hahahaha. For most of my childhood I thought the same about #5. Or maybe someone living in a sewer.

Posted: 1 year, 6 months ago at Oct 31 3:51

I like it! I find it very entertaining! :D

Posted: 1 year, 6 months ago at Oct 31 5:43

This is gold.

unconventionality

Posted: 1 year, 6 months ago at Nov 1 21:54

Very creative list! Nice one.

Posted: 3 months, 2 weeks ago at Feb 5 12:33

Thanks for the laugh! I needed it this morning. Great list!
I'm glad to know that someone besides me sees titles like this and has similar thoughts. ;)

Posted: 3 months, 2 weeks ago at Feb 5 13:13

Bitches be crazy. Never has anyone described "The Bell Jar" more perfectly.

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