One of the greatest novels in all of American literature was originally titled Catch-18. Then Joseph Heller found out that a novel about World War II called Mila 18 already existed. So he changed his book to Catch-22. And guess which American...
Before William Golding named his novel Lord of the Flies, based on a reference to Beelzebub, the book’s working title was Strangers From Within. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Strangers From Within” Grant...
When it comes to job titles, the prepositions of and for can seem interchangeable and arbitrary, but they mean slightly different things. Of, as in a Dean of Student Conduct, is in charge of a particular area by themselves, whereas a Vice President...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski has a game about Dirkens novels — that is, Dickens novels with one letter in the title changed. For example, what’s the Dirkens novel about a domicile where tired orphans can take some time off work, or a shorter Dirkens...
If you’re into the manners and customs of correspondence, don’t forget that a boy under the age of about 12 is referred to as a Master, and a man over the age of 18 is a Mister. It goes back to the time of guild workers. This is part of...
Stan Carey has an excellent example of book spine poetry up on his site, this one titled “Antarctica.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Book Spine Poetry” We’ve talked on the show before about book...