This blog is for people who do not have thousands of hours to read book reviews or blurbs or first sentences. I will cut through all the cryptic crap, and give you the meat of the story in one condensed image. Now you can read the greatest literary works of all time in mere seconds!

A new Better Book Title will be posted every weekday. Every Friday a reader's submission will be posted. Redesign and titles by Dan Wilbur unless credited otherwise. Please use proper credits when reprinting.

SUBMISSIONS: email Dan Wilbur
at dwilbs [at] gmail [dot] com

Visit danwilbur.com

Theme by Conkers. Redesign by Anya Garrett.

 
Caleb Carr: The Alienist

Caleb Carr: The Alienist




  
Chuck Klosterman: Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs

Chuck Klosterman: Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs




  
William Shakespeare: As You Like It

William Shakespeare: As You Like It




  
Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live (by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller)

Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live (by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller)




  

DANWILBUR.COM →

The weekend marked a full year of Better Book Titles: 260 books, one fake painting, and over 2.6 million visitors. Thank you so much for sharing the site, and for sending me submissions and kind words about the titles.

I like keeping the blog strictly about literature (and I’ll continue to do so) but I thought today would be a good day to share my own website, one mostly devoted to stand-up comedy and other humor writing.

I’ll try to keep this site and my own as funny as possible!

Thanks again for reading. Happy Fourth of July.

Dan

www.danwilbur.com



  
(right click to enlarge) BetterBookTitles.com presents its very first FREE LIVE show at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe 10/19/2011! w/ Special Guests:Adam Ross (Author of Mr. Peanut and Ladies and Gentlemen)Kambri Crews (Author of Burn Down the Ground, a new memoir about growing up in Texas with a Dad who tried to kill her mom.)Christian Finnegan (Husband of Kambri Crews. Comedian from “Are We There Yet?” on TBS and his own Comedy Central Special, Au Contraire)Hosted by Dan Wilbur (Betterbooktitles.com, Onion News Network on IFC), the Better Book Club will feature stand-up, a panel discussion of this month’s book, and an audience Q&A.Subjects up for discussion for Oct. 19th: the dark side of marriage, meta-fiction, eating disorders, Alfred Hitchcock, video game writing, and terrible vacations.About this month’s book, Mr. Peanut (2010):  David Pepin is caught with his hands in his wife’s mouth, force-feeding (or retrieving?) a lethal serving of peanuts she’s allergic to. The two detectives on the case? Real-life possible wife-murderer, Dr. Sam Sheppard and his partner Ward Hastroll, a re-envisioning of the murderer in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. Listed in the New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2010.**Buy the book here and come prepared to join the discussion**http://adam-ross.com/buy-the-book/HOW TO PREPARE: You have over a month to read the book, however, like any good book club, you can get away with not reading anything and still enjoy the night’s discussion!Housing Works Bookstore Cafe 126 Crosby St. New York, NYWednesday, October 19th @ 7:00 PMFREE!Beer, coffee, and food available during the show! RSVP here For more info, contact Amanda: events@housingworksbookstore.org or 212-966-0466 ext. 1104Housing Works Bookstore Cafe is a nonprofit bookstore, cafe, and event space that raises money to fight AIDS and homelessness. LOGO and Poster by Anya Garrett.

(right click to enlarge)

BetterBookTitles.com presents its very first FREE LIVE show at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe 10/19/2011!

w/ Special Guests:

Adam Ross (Author of Mr. Peanut and Ladies and Gentlemen)
Kambri Crews (Author of Burn Down the Ground, a new memoir about growing up in Texas with a Dad who tried to kill her mom.)
Christian Finnegan (Husband of Kambri Crews. Comedian from “Are We There Yet?” on TBS and his own Comedy Central Special, Au Contraire)

Hosted by Dan Wilbur (Betterbooktitles.com, Onion News Network on IFC), the Better Book Club will feature stand-up, a panel discussion of this month’s book, and an audience Q&A.

Subjects up for discussion for Oct. 19th: the dark side of marriage, meta-fiction, eating disorders, Alfred Hitchcock, video game writing, and terrible vacations.

About this month’s book, Mr. Peanut (2010):  David Pepin is caught with his hands in his wife’s mouth, force-feeding (or retrieving?) a lethal serving of peanuts she’s allergic to. The two detectives on the case? Real-life possible wife-murderer, Dr. Sam Sheppard and his partner Ward Hastroll, a re-envisioning of the murderer in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. Listed in the New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2010.

**Buy the book here and come prepared to join the discussion**
http://adam-ross.com/buy-the-book/

HOW TO PREPARE: You have over a month to read the book, however, like any good book club, you can get away with not reading anything and still enjoy the night’s discussion!

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe
126 Crosby St. New York, NY
Wednesday, October 19th @ 7:00 PM
FREE!
Beer, coffee, and food available during the show!

RSVP here

For more info, contact Amanda: events@housingworksbookstore.org or 212-966-0466 ext. 1104

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe is a nonprofit bookstore, cafe, and event space that raises money to fight AIDS and homelessness.

LOGO and Poster by Anya Garrett.




  
The First Better Book Club Recording

danwilbur:

In case you missed the first Better Book Club, here is a recording of the show with Adam Ross (author of Mr. Peanut), Christian Finnegan (Comedy Central, VH1), and Kambri Crews (author of Burn Down the Ground).

The show includes stand-up by me and Christian, and a panel discussion of Adam’s book.

Thanks to Anya Garrett for recording and editing the show. Also a special thanks to Amanda Bullock for helping to put the show together at Housing Works Bookstore. Music: Kevin Macleod.




  
Come see comedians and authors discuss contemporary literature in a panel that will put your boring old book club to shame! The next Better Book Club’s subject: MAGIC!Join us to find out which is better: real magic or fake magic? Wednesday, April 18th @ 7:00 PM Featuring: Lev Grossman (author of The Magicians and The Magician King) Haley Tanner (author of Vaclav and Lena)Adam Conover (Olde English sketch comedy) Magic and comedy from Harrison Greenbaum (Comedy Central’s Comics to Watch)Hosted by Dan Wilbur (creator of Betterbooktitles.com)Topics to be discussed: fantasy, performance, Narnia, Harry Potter, Brooklyn, and coin tricks. Books are available at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe at half price! Get reading! http://housingworks.org/locations/detail/bookstore-cafe More info and RSVP here.

Come see comedians and authors discuss contemporary literature in a panel that will put your boring old book club to shame!

The next Better Book Club’s subject: MAGIC!

Join us to find out which is better: real magic or fake magic?

Wednesday, April 18th @ 7:00 PM


Featuring:

Lev Grossman (author of The Magicians and The Magician King)
Haley Tanner (author of Vaclav and Lena)
Adam Conover (Olde English sketch comedy)
Magic and comedy from Harrison Greenbaum (Comedy Central’s Comics to Watch)
Hosted by Dan Wilbur (creator of Betterbooktitles.com)

Topics to be discussed: fantasy, performance, Narnia, Harry Potter, Brooklyn, and coin tricks.

Books are available at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe at half price! Get reading! http://housingworks.org/locations/detail/bookstore-cafe

More info and RSVP here.




  
Save the date! Wednesday, June 6th @ 8:30 PM at Union Hall (702 Union St. Brooklyn). Comedians with Books features the funniest authors in NYC doing anything but reading from their own boring books! Come see a night of great stand-up comedy from humorists who have all penned novels, memoirs, and gift books you got for mom last Mother’s Day. Hosted by Better Book Titles creator, Dan Wilbur. Sponsored by Perigee books and Community Bookstore in Park Slope. Join Community Bookstore (143 7th Ave) for a pre-show BBQ at 6:00 PM. Free and open to the public, but BEA attendees can expect some special gifts! RSVP here. Lineup TBD. More book covers to come!

Save the date! Wednesday, June 6th @ 8:30 PM at Union Hall (702 Union St. Brooklyn).

Comedians with Books features the funniest authors in NYC doing anything but reading from their own boring books! Come see a night of great stand-up comedy from humorists who have all penned novels, memoirs, and gift books you got for mom last Mother’s Day. Hosted by Better Book Titles creator, Dan Wilbur.

Sponsored by Perigee books and Community Bookstore in Park Slope. Join Community Bookstore (143 7th Ave) for a pre-show BBQ at 6:00 PM.

Free and open to the public, but BEA attendees can expect some special gifts!

RSVP here.

Lineup TBD.

More book covers to come!