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22 famous book titles that include food

Off the top of your head, how many books can you think of that have food in their name? We looked back at memorable kids’ books from our childhood, some bonafide classics, and everything in between to find famous titles that mention foods, categories of food, and meals. Here are 22 famous book titles that include food.

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Hamlet (1600)

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Mars, Inc. named their famous candy bar “3 Musketeers” because when it was first released in 1932, it came in three flavors of nougat: chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. However, the name is also an obvious literary reference to the classic swashbuckler novel “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandre Dumas, which was released 88 years before the chocolate bar.

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The Count of Monte Cristo (1846)

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Alexandre Dumas didn’t intend for his books to share their names with foods, but history had different plans. Nearly a century after Dumas penned “The Count of Monte Cristo,” a French adventure tale, a recipe for a ham and cheese sandwich dipped in egg or batter started appearing in cookbooks and kitchens across the U.S. By the 1960s, it picked up a permanent name: the Monte Cristo sandwich.

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Lorna Doone (1869)

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This might be the first food in our list whose fame has eclipsed that of its literary moniker. Many folks know the Nabisco shortbread cookies known as Lorna Doone, but they might not know that the name comes from an 1869 romance novel written by British author R. D. Blackmore. This fact would be surprising to people from the turn of the 20th century, as “Lorna Doone” was one of the most popular books then.

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Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884)

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Often referred to as one of the Great American Novels, Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” was first released in 1884 as a sequel to his 1976 book “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.” It is unclear how Twain came up with the name Huckleberry Finn, but we do know that the inspiration for the character came from the author’s childhood friend Tom Blankenship.

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The Grapes of Wrath (1939)

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The Great Depression novel “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck doesn’t contain any grapes — at least not in our recollection from high school literature class — as the phrase is actually a lyrical reference to “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Specifically, the verse says: “Mine eyes have seen the glory / Of the coming of the Lord / He is trampling out the vintage / Where the grapes of wrath are stored.”

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The Catcher in the Rye (1951)

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Here’s another example of a book that borrows its title from famous lyrics. Robert Burns’ 1782 poem “Comin' Thro' the Rye” includes the lines “Gin a body meet a body / Comin thro' the rye,” which protagonist Holden Caulfield misremembers as “If a body catch a body / Coming through the rye,” and imagines himself preventing kids playing in a field of rye from falling off a cliff. However, we’re using rye to refer to the type of bread made with this grain.

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The Ginger Man (1955)

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“The Catcher in the Rye” was banned in the U.S. around the same time as another book, J. P. Donleavy’s humorous novel “The Ginger Man.” Although ginger is a commonly used spice, the title refers to the red hair of the rebellious main character, Sebastian Dangerfield, who has no interest in being a respectable husband, father, worker, or student, and instead spends his time drinking, getting into fights, and having affairs. 

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Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1958)

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Truman Capote’s 1958 novella “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” introduces the now-iconic character of Holly Golightly and her exploits as a young, Manhattan socialite in the middle of the 20th century. The title refers to Holly’s obsession with the famous jewelry store — the place in which she feels she truly belongs, as it is the epitome of wealth and luxury.

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Naked Lunch (1959)

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William S. Burroughs was one of the quintessential writers of the Beat Generation, and his most famous work was the 1959 novel “Naked Lunch.” A collection of vignettes, “Naked Lunch” delved into drug use and addiction, homosexuality, homicide, and the death penalty, among other controversial topics. The title didn’t refer to an actual meal, but instead an honest moment when everything is on display — and it was suggested by fellow Beat icon Jack Kerouac. 

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Green Eggs and Ham (1960)

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We’ve already mentioned ham, but not its breakfast companion, eggs, both of which are mentioned in Dr. Seuss’ classic children’s book “Green Eggs and Ham.” Lines like “Would you eat them in a box? Would you eat them with a fox?” are still burned into the memory of many adults, even though the book was written more than 60 years ago.

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James and the Giant Peach (1961)

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Another kids' book from another legendary children’s author, “James and the Giant Peach” is Roald Dahl’s tale of a little boy and the enormous fruit he uses as a vehicle in which to travel the world. Written in 1961, “James and the Giant Peach” was also adapted into a live-action and stop-motion animated film that was released in 1996.

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A Clockwork Orange (1962)

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Director Stanley Kubrick made “A Clockwork Orange” into a movie that became more famous than the book on which it was based. Nevertheless, Anthony Burgess’ 1962 dystopian novel is still hailed as one of the greatest books ever written. In a metafictional nod, “A Clockwork Orange” is the name of a book manuscript within “A Clockwork Orange,” which protagonist Alex tears up after brutally beating its author in an act of random violence.

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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964)

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Roald Dahl makes another appearance in this list with his 1964 kids’ book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” which is, of course, the source material for the 1971 musical film “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” and its 2005 remake. The movie was an enormous success and followed roughly the same plot as the book, but the changes that were made and the casting of Gene Wilder over Irish actor Spike Milligan were enough for Dahl to disown the original film.

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Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (1978)

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Growing up, one of our favorite books was “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” by Judi Barrett, which dates back to 1978 and was exceptionally popular in the 1980s and 1990s. Younger generations might be more familiar with the 2009 animated film starring Bill Hader, which differs from the book. The most notable change is that in Barrett’s version, food naturally falls from the sky in the town of Chewandswallow, but in the movie, the town is called Swallow Falls, and is only renamed Chewandswallow after inventor Flint Lockwood (Hader) creates a device that turns water into food.

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The House on Mango Street (1984)

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One of the most famous pieces of Chicano literature is the 1984 novel “The House on Mango Street,” a New York Times Bestseller by Sandra Cisneros about a 12-year-old girl growing up in Chicago. Like other books in this list, this coming-of-age tale has faced censorship for its sensitive subject matter.

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So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish (1984)

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Douglas Adams is best known for his book “Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,” which is also the name of the literary franchise that includes six volumes. The fourth book, released in 1984, was called “So Long, and Thanks for All The Fish,” which is actually a callback to a line in the series’ namesake novel. (As you may recall, it’s the message the dolphins leave for the humans before they depart Earth, which is about to be destroyed to make way for an intergalactic highway.)

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If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (1985)

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If you give a mouse a cookie, he will ask for a glass of milk…at least, that’s what the classic illustrated kids' book by Laura Numeroff says. Numeroff also wrote an entire franchise worth of sequels — including “If You Give a Moose a Muffin,” “If You Give a Pig a Pancake,” and about a dozen others — but the original from 1985 still remains the most popular and memorable. 

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Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (1987)

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Fannie Flagg’s famous book “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe” is a Southern-set story of a friendship that forms between a middle-aged housewife and an elderly nursing home resident, as well as a retelling of tales from the latter’s life. It was also the inspiration for the 1991 dramedy film “Fried Green Tomatoes” starring Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, Mary-Louise Parker, and Mary Stuart Masterson. 

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Chicken Soup for the Soul (1993)

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Who remembers when the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” books absolutely swept the nation in the mid-to-late 1990s? This extensive series of self-help books compiled inspiring true stories and came in volumes that included everything from “Chicken Soup for the Woman’s Soul” and “Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul” to “Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover’s Soul” and “Chicken Soup for the Prisoner’s Soul.” 

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Who Moved My Cheese? (1998)

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Clearly, people were all about personal improvement in the ‘90s, as this list includes yet another self-help book, “Who Moved My Cheese?,” an allegorical work by Dr. Spencer Johnson that centers on coping with change. One thing that didn’t change for a while? “Who Moved My Cheese” stayed atop the New York Times Bestseller list for five full years! To date, the motivational manual has sold some 30 million copies.

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Fast Food Nation (2001)

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p dir=”ltr”>Of course, “Fast Food Nation” mentions food — or, more specifically, a food category — in the title, as it’s all about food! This non-fiction expose created waves when it came out in 2001 and took a deep dive into the history of fast food, the industry’s unsafe working conditions, and the processed nature of the food itself.