Comments on: Saturday, January 26: Mississippi Mud

By: Jeff Baker

Jeff Baker — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 02:30:39 +0000

John I got annother one for you. Check out the anthology “Spies and More Spies” edited by Robert Arthur(Random House, 1967) where Arthur includes his own story “Call For Help” (as by “John West”) first published in 1938 under Arthur’s own name with the title “Distress Call.” Two different titles, each meaning something later on. Keep in mind the important phone call early in the story…

By: Jon L. Breen

Jon L. Breen — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 19:32:50 +0000

I\’m very fond of ironic titles, e.g. ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT or THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES.

By: John

John — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 03:19:17 +0000

I too love those double meanings. I also really like it when the title is meaningless at first and then it suddenly (Whoa!) makes sense. I still remember the satisfaction I felt when, halfway through the movie, the title “Rain Man” was explained. For me, it made an already good story even better.

By: JLW

JLW — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 01:43:36 +0000

Edgar-winner Charles Ardai once had a story about a murder in a nudist colony published in AHMM. The title:

“The Naked and the Dead”

And that’s the fuggin’ truth.

By: Jeff Baker

Jeff Baker — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:43:01 +0000

I’ve always loved titles with double-meanings, and in Mysteries titles that actually are clues to the mystery! Some of the latter are “Beyond The Grave” by Muller and Pronzini, “The Ultimate Clue” by Boucher and “C is for Corpse” by Sue Grafton. And her father Chip Grafton began a series of mysteries with a title progression from an obscure nursery rhyme, (I think it started with “The Rat Began To Gnaw The Rope.”) And there’s a book about book titles called “All We Need Now Is A Title!” Fun post, John! Thanks!

By: sheena

sheena — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 22:18:35 +0000

As an avid reader many things enter my mind when perusing the bookshelves, included all those you mentioned. I distinctly remember cruising through titles of the mystery section in my favourite used bookstore when I came across a Needlecraft Mystery Series by Monica Ferris. Here are a few of the titles that captured my attention: A Stitch in Time, A Murderous Yarn, Sins and Needles, Knit One, Kill Two, and Hanging by a Thread. Needless (oops, almost missed that last ‘s’) to say, I didn’t add them to my choice of reading material on that particular trip and subsequently have no opinion as to their content.

I have since come upon series by Laura Childs called the Tea Shop Mysteries some of which include: The English Breakfast Murder, Jasmine Moon Murder, and Death by Darjeeling. I’m wondering if one titled Suffocating on Souchong is brewing

By: Kai

Kai — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 21:31:40 +0000

Oh, this is fun! I didn’t know we could name favorites

Here are some of mine: I, the Jury; A Murder Is Announced; Clutch of Constables; Gone Girl;

and, best of all:

The Gutting of Couffignal.