The Bible has fascinated authors throughout history and many have adopted its themes pretty explicitly in their fiction. Rosemary's Baby has an inverted birth of Christ episode near the end when the devil's baby is born and three men come to visit. The inversion is pretty obvious in the film as well as the book.
A number of authors have used bible phrases as their book titles. It's interesting to me that every now and then when I'm reading the Bible I come across a phrase and think, "That would make a great title for a novel." The one I saw yesterday was in the book of Isaiah which I'm reading for Advent. The phrase was "abode of jackals." Now wouldn't that make a great title for a story about a dysfunctional family that are consuming one another through greed, jealousy, and hate. What a challenge to figure out how to redeem one or all of the characters. Sigrid Undset could have done it. She was a master of the human dilemma and the impact of sin and grace. Or how about a spy novel with a hero trying to prevent a terrorist attack by a cell of foreign agents working for an enemy country. And then again couldn't Agatha Christie turn that title into a fascinating murder mystery!
I wish I had a talent for writing fiction because I love a good story. I've written a few short stories and even attempted a novel once, but I don't think I have enough imagination to carry it off. More's the pity because it would be a lot of fun.
I'm sure it's no surprise to readers that I'm not the first to think scriptural passages make great book titles. There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of novels with scriptural titles. I've even read a good number. Shakespeare is also a popular title-generator but that's a subject for another post.
My question for you today is: Do you think you'd recognize a book title that came from the bible? And if you did, could you identify the bible book it came from? Here's a trivia quiz, a handful of ten books with scriptural titles. Can you identify the biblical sources of these ten titles? I'll list the answers at the end.
1. The Pale Horse by Agatha Christie, a murder mystery which involves the murder of a priest and a list of names found in his shoe of people who seem to have no connection.
2. The Skin of Our Teeth by Thornton Wilder, a play by the award winning author of Our Town. This play about an eternal family escaping one disaster after another won the Pullitzer Prize for Best Drama in 1943. Wilder took three Pullitzers over the years. Our Town and his novel, The Bridge of San Luis Rey also won.
3. Render Unto Caesar, a short story by Paul Barron about capitol punishment. You have two chances to get this one right. That's a big hint.
4. A Time to Embrace by Karen Kingsbury, Christian inspirational fiction about a couple in a troubled marriage. The best-selling author has written a number of books turned into Hallmark films. Frankly, that doesn't make me want to read her books.
5. The Scapegoat by Daphne DuMaurier, a suspense-filled novel about two men who meet accidentally, an Englishman and Frenchman. They look identical and the Frenchman steals the identity of his look-alike leaving the other man no choice but to adopt the other's identity. DuMaurier is a masterful storyteller. I've read a number of her books but not this one. I look forward to the treat!
6. The Sun also Rises by Ernest Hemingway, his first novel based on his experiences in Paris.
7. The Violent Bear it Away by Flannery O'Connor, one of her few novels. Her stories always involve the impact of grace on the characters.
8. The Children of Men by P.D. James, a dystopian novel about a world where no more children are being born. Seems especially prophetic in today's world with the collapse of the birth rate. This phrase appears in a number of places in the bible. Give it your best shot!
9. Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, historical fiction for young adults about a young Jewish girl living in Copenhagen during the WW II Nazi occupation. It was a 1990 Newberry medal winner.
10. Evidence of Things Unseen by Marianne Wiggins, historical fiction about the coming of the atomic age and overconfidence in science. Sounds interesting.
I hope you enjoy the exercise and find a few book titles here that sound intriguing enough to tempt you. On my next visit to the library I plan to look for Du Maurier's book. She was one of my favorite authors when I was a teenager, but I never read The Scapegoat. I also want to see the movie which was originally produced in 1959 with Alec Guinness and Betty Davis but was remade in 2012.
Have you read any novels with scriptural titles and if so, will you share them in the comments section. I'm always looking for my next great read!
And here are the answers to the quiz.
1. Revelation 6:8
2. Job 19:20
3. Matthew 22:21, Mark 12:17
4. Ecclesiastes 1
5. Leviticus 16:10
6. Ecclesiastes 1:5
7. Matthew 11:18
8. Psalm 33:13-15, Psalm 14:2-3, Ecclesiastes 3:10-11, Proverbs 8:4-5, John 1:12
9. Psalm 147:4
10. Hebrews 11.1
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