Literal Titles
Single Letter Book Titles


I remember distinctly seeing the paperback edition of Andy Warhol's "a" in the Coop, and thinking, "My God, now I have an excuse to buy "V" and "Z", and then I can look for the other 23!" I didn't, but since then I've felt a collector's twinge whenever I've spotted another one-letter book title. So now, I collect them in my imagination...

"Books you were going to write with letters for titles. Have you read his F? O yes, but I prefer Q. Yes, but W is wonderful. O yes, W. Remember your epiphanies on green oval leaves, deeply deep, copies to be sent if you died to all the great libraries of the world, including Alexandria."
James Joyce, "Ulysses".

Close but no cigar, to:

Thanks to Stephen Frug for several friendly letters and new examples!

One nice thing about the idea of this collection was its finiteness. I wouldn't be needing a lot of storage, even if I managed to get a complete collection!


Last modified on 12 October 2020.