Welcome to the 34th issue of the Lists of Note newsletter: a new (old) list each Sunday. You can support this project by becoming a paid subscriber, or by donating, or by purchasing a copy of the Lists of Note book. Thanks.
On 14th September 1953, having seen it rejected by a number of other publishers, 42-year-old aspiring novelist William Golding sent his manuscript, then titled Strangers from Within, to Faber & Faber. To Golding’s delight, one editor, Charles Monteith, saw potential, and almost exactly a year later Golding’s iconic debut novel was published bearing its new title, Lord of the Flies, as suggested by another Faber employee in February of 1954. This list of alternatives was compiled days earlier.
Alternative titles for William Golding’s novel:-
Island Impact
Hunt the Island
They Came to an Island
Island Refuge
Offspring of an Island
The Foster Island
Beast in the Jungle
The Isle is Full of Noises
Fun and Games
Beast on the Island
Trouble Island
The Beast on Coral Island
Island Trouble
Island Story
My Island
Let’s Play Islands
Smoke on the Island
New Coral Island
Coral Island Renewed
I’m surprised Fun and Games was not Fun and Games Island.