There might be a few marketing departments out there who need an alarm clock. Evidence: titles of three of this fall’s biggest books.
The Night Strangers
The Night Circus
Nightwoods
Just when I thought this trend was limited to fall, what should cross my desk but galleys of The Night Swimmer by Matt Bondurant, a January 2012 release.
While the description sounds unique (see below—any anno that mentions an enigmatic goat herder has my attention), the title feels anything but fresh to this fiction editor.
When Fred and Elly Bulkington arrive in a small town on the southern coast of Ireland from Vermont, having won a pub in a contest, they encounter a wild, strange land and the native resistance to outsiders. As Fred immerses himself in the life of a pub owner, Elly takes the ferry out to a nearby island where she—to the disbelief of the locals—is consumed by her ritual of open water ocean swimming, pushing herself to the limits. Elly becomes enmeshed in the island’s troubles—the power struggles between an enigmatic goat herder and the family that has controlled the area for centuries—while Fred’s sanity wavers and their marriage begins to unravel.
Noticed any title trends lately? How much do they affect your decision to pick up a book?
I think a book based in Ireland can be spooky at any time of the year…the country with its legends, myths and ruins lends itself to stories of this type. I need to read this book as I am fanatic over anything Irish, especially books.
HI must admit, I have added the title to my book `check out` list. It seems a very long list
Dave
Well, I guess the not-so-different title isn’t hurting this one any.
Hi, I dont think that trends, in fiction anyway, do influence my reading. Ok, they might let me pick up a book, say, in a store. Just to discover the trend. But my reading really follows books which I have lined up (mentally) to read some while before actually getting around to do doing so.
I went one step ahead of you and pre ordered it…