Titles changed for Harry and others

For my husband's birthday this weekend, he received a copy of The New Book of Lists: The Original Compendium of Curious Information by David Wallechinsky and Amy Wallace from his brother and future sister-in-law. It was the current 2005 copy of the original he prized in his elementary age years. As I skimmed through it last night, I discovered what fun my husband must have enjoyed in his younger days.

There are a number of chapters on a variety of topics, but a few included literary tidbits. One of these categories was “The Original Titles of 31 Famous Books”. Although changing titles isn't unheard of in the publishing business; however, the list included some interesting books. The last entry on the list addressed the book Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) by J. K. Rowling. Since the movie addition of this book is being released on DVD tomorrow I thought, what a jolly little spot I could write on this information. But, it is not too be, as my brain is just not oozing much witticism today. So, here is what the original title for the 4th book about life at Hogwarts was to be: Harry Potter and the Doomspell Tournament. Of course, the first book in this series was originally released under two titles. The title for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was released as Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in the U.K.

Since the entry just sort of went flat with the Harry revelation, I thought I should at least add a little more to either keep your interest or at least add some balance. With Pride and Prejudice, the movie, up for a few Oscars last night, I thought you would be interested to know that the original title considered by Jane Austen for her 1813 book was First Impressions. And, for those pirate fans out there, 1883's Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson was original titled The Sea-Cook. I think there were less than a half dozen titles that would be considered Young Adult or Children’s literary works within the 31 listed.

Enjoy Harry with the others as he is bound to become a classic as well.