When book titles steer you wrong
Currently I am reading a book called "King of the Jews: The Greatest Mob Story Never Told". It is a biography of famed gangster Arnold Rothstein, who was actually the model for characters in The Great Gatsby and Guys and Dolls. Plus I love watching movies about the mob and mob behavior (i.e. Casino, Goodfellas, the mob with torches in Beauty and the Beast, etc.).
So the book is about 350 pages and for the first 70 pages I noticed that the book alternated narrative styles between an introduction to biblical history and an overview of the days after Rothstein was shot. But still I stuck with it because, after all, it was only 70 pages....Then it was 140 pages and they are telling me about the first Jews in America and how Rothstein's grandfather had a hat company in 1860. Now I am about 3/4ths of the way done and I have to say, I keep flipping to the back of the bookjacket to read the blurb to see if the story is actually about Rothstein's grandfather and father. No joke, Arnold is 18 and the book is almost over!
It's weird when book titles become vessels for false marketing. I keep reading the book because the book is indeed interesting. The only problem is that about 25% of the book has been about Arnold Rothstein.
I would rename it "A History of 19th Century Jewish Settlement in New York City". Perhaps that wouldn't have sold as well?
So the book is about 350 pages and for the first 70 pages I noticed that the book alternated narrative styles between an introduction to biblical history and an overview of the days after Rothstein was shot. But still I stuck with it because, after all, it was only 70 pages....Then it was 140 pages and they are telling me about the first Jews in America and how Rothstein's grandfather had a hat company in 1860. Now I am about 3/4ths of the way done and I have to say, I keep flipping to the back of the bookjacket to read the blurb to see if the story is actually about Rothstein's grandfather and father. No joke, Arnold is 18 and the book is almost over!It's weird when book titles become vessels for false marketing. I keep reading the book because the book is indeed interesting. The only problem is that about 25% of the book has been about Arnold Rothstein.
I would rename it "A History of 19th Century Jewish Settlement in New York City". Perhaps that wouldn't have sold as well?
posted by Howard @ 10:16 PM
1 comments
1 Comments:
I know what you mean. I was hot to read a book The Lady and the Panda, sold as the exciting and wonderful story of the woman who brought the first baby panda out of China. Well, it was exciting and wonderful...until after her success...then the sorrows of her life overwhelmed her and she committed suicide in the William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh! THAT wasn't on the dust jacket. You should check out the bood TOUGH JEWS by Rich Cohen. A great look at a part of Jewish history in the US that we don't learn in religious school... You'll learn about Meyer Lansky, Bugsy Siegel and lots more. Fun, exciting and illuminating. Have I ever steered you wrong? AL
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