Is the book title misleading?

Use this forum to discuss the January 2018 Book of the Month, "And Then I Met Margaret" by Rob White
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Philip Chepsingil
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Re: Is the book title misleading?

Post by Philip Chepsingil »

kandscreeley wrote: 01 Jan 2018, 12:46 I don't think it's necessarily indicative of a romance novel. I didn't get that idea from the title at all. I don't think it's a bad title.
While picking the book for reading and review, I thought it would have some kind of romance theme. But, when I read the book, I found nothing close to that. Therefore, I think the title is not suitable for the book.
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Post by nicole_d15 »

I did think that the title was a bit misleading. At first, I thought it could potentially be a love story or a book about how he met his wife. But, in the introduction he does mention that the layout of the book is a lot of different stories that he experienced throughout his life, so then I no longer thought it was a love story. But, he did mention that you will meet Margaret towards the end of the book and in my personal opinion, he really played that story up. I thought she would take up the rest of the book, her story would be grander, and that chapter would have the most emphasis. Yes, it was an important chapter. But was it really the chapter to have the book named after? I don't think so, but Rob White must have. It must have made such a huge impact in his life and was chosen for that reason.

What do you think a more accurate title would be?
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Post by Neptunek13 »

I do think the title is misleading because I did not find Margaret's story very compelling. The Chapter about Margaret appears late in the book and had a minimal affect on the author. I didn't assume it was a Romance novel but I was expecting the Book to be all about a life transforming change upon meeting Margaret. In reality I actually had to read the paragraphs relating to her question twice because I found it a bit of a let down and assumed I had missed the point.

"Lilac Mints" might be a good title. I had never heard of lilac mints. Having mint could be thought of as a small pleasant experience, In a way, the book is a collection of the author's experiences.
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Post by Quinto »

I was also taken aback by the title. From the face of it, I couldn't relate the genre and the title.
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Post by Quinto »

I was also taken aback by the title. From the face of it, I couldn't relate the genre and the title.
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Post by daratega11 »

When I read Margaret's story, I realized that it's not as weighty as others but I am sure the lesson which Margaret taught the author made him give the book that title. But really, the title does not suit the book.
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Post by kaylaolson35 »

I liked the title of the book. From what I got from it, Margaret was the one that made him realize that there was a possibility of starting a new life. If he wouldn’t have met her, none of this would have happened, or at least a good portion of it.
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Post by Palfree »

I think the main title is misleading. However, the subtitle gives the reader a better idea of what the book is about.
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Post by Mitchell Starc »

I also had problems with the title. As I read the book I thought the story with Margaret was not according to the title of the book
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Post by Sindhu Srinath »

I felt that the title was misleading. I thought it was a story-type read, like a long novel. I wouldn't have expected a collection of short stories with this title.
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Post by Nelsy Mtsweni »

I also don't think that the title is at all compatible with the content in the book. I was also expecting a romance novel of a guy who has had misfortunes in his love life, until Margaret came and turned the ship around.
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Post by mnmueller »

I think the book title would not seem quite so misleading if the emotional pay off from the meeting with Margaret was one the reader could relate to. It was obviously a very important moment for the author, but to me at least it didn't have much of an emotional impact. I feel that if he had made that the last tale of the book it would have worked better.

As for the romance aspect, I never got that feeling from the title. I knew going in that it was a self-help title, so that might account for it.
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Post by Cristina Chifane »

I was overwhelmed by the amount of reviews on this book. The title is indeed misleading for an inspirational book, but maybe that was the author's real intention: to attract the readers' attention. I am not a fan of inspirational books and I don't know what such an author would have to do to make me choose it in favour of some good fiction.
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Post by Annogor »

I think the title throws you off at first. You would be led to believe there was romantic temdencies, which turns out to be hilarious when you finally realise Margret is actually a tiny winy soul. So i think the title is just perfect
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Post by Wordforawhile »

Sahani Nimandra wrote: 02 Jan 2018, 02:02 Actually a big NO! The author pushed my "curiosity" button, like "why did he name the book after her?" But after he justified his reasons, I was very pleased with his answer. For me the author seemed to have used a continuous approach "... and then I met Margaret". The "and then" this expressed to me out of all people this particular person is "special", that he knew she had "hit him on the right spot" which as a result he dedicated the book to her. Actually yes she taught him a very important lesson for life.
It is interesting that you seem to be the only one who "gets" the title and frankly I think this is what a lot of authors do on purpose. They give a title that seems to be off the mark, but at the same time it gives a small group of readers an "a-ha" moment and leads the other readers to think about the part the title is pointing to and wonder why it was chosen. It is the author saying "This is the part I think is most important, this is what I want you to get out of it."
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