What is the relevance of the book title?

Use this forum to discuss the April 2021 Book of the month, "There's a Rooster in My Bathroom: A Quest for Meaning in the Bathroom, the Boardroom and Beyond" by Trish Ostroski.
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Sushan Ekanayake
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Re: What is the relevance of the book title?

Post by Sushan Ekanayake »

Mwatu wrote: 17 Apr 2021, 02:32 While I see how this title would attract attention, I immediately took it to be a child's book and that deterred me from pursuing it further. It is interesting however to learn that is an autobiography with self-help elements. I will however pass on reading the book.
You are a good example for a reader who got distracted as well as misinterpreted the title as well as the cover page and took this book as a children's book. But the negative as well as the unexpected part of that identification is passing on the book. So it seems like the author's advertising strategy has its positive as well as negative aspects too
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Post by Sushan Ekanayake »

Eva Stoyanova wrote: 17 Apr 2021, 03:20 Same! I thought it's a children's book at first and I wasn't very interested. It's quite unique actually, we don't see very inspiring and self-help books having this unusual type of cover.
Yes the book is unique, starting from its cover page. The author has chosen a unique title and a cover page. We do not see such colourful cover pages in usual self-help books. So the usual reader will not take this book as a self-help book or a memoir. And it does not seem quite inspirational on the cover page. So this is a good example to not come into conclusions by just looking at the outer appearance
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Post by Sushan Ekanayake »

KanaSmriti wrote: 17 Apr 2021, 07:33 I totally agree, I also thought that it's a children's book but I fully understood the meaning after finishing the book. I think it totally justified the book.
Yes, with the appearance it is totally reasonable to think of this as a children's book. But what is important is that you understand why the author has named this book like that after reading the whole book. Atleast you will keep on reading to understand the actual meaning of the title. So how can anyone not say that the title is irrelevant or distracting? It is totally relevant and it attracts a wide audience
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Post by Cynthia Olyy »

I won't lie, the title caught me first, and just like you, I thought it was a children's book. Learning about her experience in advertising makes it all crystal clear and interesting. Overall, I like it.
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Post by Joyful17 »

I think it is an appropriate title because it relates to the author's unrestricted and impulsive nature, which has helped her overcome enormous challenges in life.
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Post by SunVixen »

Like many people are here, I thought it was a humor book. A rooster in the bathroom sounds very funny. I guess the author made the catchy title on purpose to attract readers.
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Post by Caroline Anne Richmond »

The title and cover are really eye catching. It could easily be mistaken for a children’s book. The cover and title sets you up to be entertained by stories as it refers to a personal story from the author. I think it is a perfect cover for this unique book.
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Post by Mys_Trea »

The author is quite clever. My attention was piqued. Like most others, I thought this was a children's book, only to realize it wasn't. As someone who's studied advertising myself, I say good job.
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Post by Kim Jek »

I think the title has more to do with advertising, because the only reference to a rooster was when she suddenly saw the rooster in her bathroom. She explains that the rooster came in contact with her for a reason. However, I don't think that is enough reason for the rooster to make it to the book's title.
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Post by Moray_001 »

The first time I saw the book, I thought it was comedy or a children's book. I think the title was mainly to catch the reader's attention and it certainly caught mine. Then after reading some pages, I realized it was quite an interesting narration of the author's life. So far, I've not yet finished the book but the sample I read while it was on Book of the Day was quite interesting.
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Post by Moray_001 »

raj_nandani_poet wrote: 02 Apr 2021, 06:34 Oh yes, the title and the cover design both give a sense of the children's book is in the discussion. I guess this is a marketing technique because when you read the blurb and then the title, you feel confused and you want to know what that really means and to connect the dots with the story.
You're absolutely right about this. I expected a funny story when I first started reading the book. Then I got to learn that the story is much deeper than the title which suggests humour.
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Post by AbhyarnaAman »

like all others, I also thought this to be a book for children. Title is undoubtedly catchy and witty. Such title do tend to attract readers.
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Post by Eddy E »

My first glimpse of the title like you said would give you the impression of a children's book and also is very humorous. I suppose the authors choice of title was for their own amusement, I feel also for advertising purpose . Before you open a book, well for me personally I look forward to catchy titles and book covers.
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Post by KapuKapu »

It is not relevant as one might mistake it for a kids book, it's the author's way of trying to draw in readers.
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Post by cookiedough »

We have all heard of the phrase never judge a book by its cover. The title is something that caught my attention and it was smart of the author to create a catchy title. It helps make the book standout from the others and it was a great read.
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