Scouts in Bondage

I wonder what kinds of search entries will bring people here with a blog post title like that…

Anyway, I’ve been reading this book recently. Well, I say reading, because it’s mainly just pictures of covers from books from yesteryear with laughable titles. Or, as the blurb on the book says, “Titles which may cause vulgar minds to misapprehend their content.”

I think my favourite book is 'Invisible Dick', where you not only get a comedy cover, but also a chapter list to laugh at, especially “Chapter 2: The Vanishing Helmet.” But there are some other gems, like ‘How to Recognise Leprosy’, and ‘The Corpse Came Too!’

Besides the fact that since many of these books were published certain words have attained a different meaning, it’s also notable how many were published by Christian book-houses. We can perhaps forgive ‘The Day Amanda Came’ or ‘Willie’s Ordeal’, but surely there has always been some humour in a title like ‘Christie’s Old Organ’. And as for ‘The Captain’s Bunk – an Adventure Story for Boys’, all that can be said is ‘hmmmmm!’

Anyway, I thoroughly recommend you get yourself a copy if you need a good giggle, as it has reduced several of my friends to paroxysms of laughter. It’s also made me consider scouring the bookshelves more closely in junk and charity shops to see if I can spot a few humorous titles to start my own collection…