Quotes of the Week – Bronte Edition

The Brontes, as a family, have written some of the most mispronounced, mistaken and misunderstood book titles in BookWorld. Especially for books that were written in English. (As soon as I figure out a good way to phonetically spell things out I can devote an entire month to the butchery of important Greek works.)

Here's a collection of some of the best Bronte mistakes:

“Do you have Jane Eee-wire?”

“I'm looking for the book Bronte by Jane Eyre.”

“I need Pride and Prejudice by Emily Bronte.” (The Bronte/ Austen switch happens more often than I really feel comfortable with.)

“Where can I find Weather Heights? Weathering Heights? Waitering Heights? Watering Heights? Weather is High?” (I totally understand that Wuthering* is not a commonly used word. What always bothers me is this is how people pronounce it while reading it off a syllabus. Weathering is the most common.)

The best:

“I need Worthington Heights by Bronson.” This customer did not get a book because she refused to believe that Wuthering Heights by Bronte could possibly be the book she needed, and we did not have anything called Worthington Heights.

I'm sure there will be a later post about my numerous problems with the Brontes. Until then know that I will hear at least one mistaken Bronte title a week while I toil in BookWorld.

* Wuthering a word used in England and Scotland to describe the noise the wind makes on the moors. This bit of trivia lodged in my 8-year-old brain due to repeated readings of The Secret Garden by Francis Hodgeson Burnett...and the numerous times I listened to the amazing Broadway musical. If I had a dollar for every time I have used that information I would have a good start on my pony army.

BookWench is Currently Reading: Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry