The title of a book is so important – and not many people have titles as consistently good as Gabriel Garcia Marquez (in my humble opinion) – and I suppose that is linked to the fact that not many people write as well as he does (again … in my humble opinion..)
Think of these:
Love in the time of Cholera
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Chronicle of a Death Foretold
The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World
No-one writes to the Colonel
Memories of my Melancholy Whores.
The General in his Labyrinth
Other titles I like, from other authors
Up in Honey’s Room – Elmore Leonard
The Poisonwood Bible – Barbara Kingsolver
Of Mice and Men – Steinbeck
And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street – Dr Seuss
Death is a lonely business – Ray Bradbury
Dandelion Wine – Ray Bradbury
Things Fall Apart – Chinua Achebe
Looking for Transwonderland – Noo Saro Wiwa
OK I’ll stop now … but it is a hard thing getting a title right, and it does matter!
I was privileged to sit in on Noo Saro Wiwa’s session at the West Cork Literary Festival last week. She was there to speak about her book Looking for Transwonderland Travels in Nigeria.
I can only imagine that every person who listened to her not only went out to buy her book, but experienced the same urge my daughter did once the talk had finished. Her exact words, ‘I’d love to go to Nigeria.’
Noo spoke of the Ministry of Fire and Miracles in Prayer City, of how she was still unable to find the words to describe Lagos, of Sugar Mummys and of her unwillingness to admit to her extended family that she no longer attended church. She spoke of her father, Ken Saro Wiwa, a man admired way beyond the borders of his home country. She spoke of her growing love of the country that she had in many ways distanced herself from. I could have sat and listened to her way beyond the allocated hour, and am longing to read the book once my daughter has finished it!
Next post will be on Nicci French, I was delighted to be able to attend their session late on Friday night…
Noo Saro Wiwa (courtesy Granta Books)
