PSST, wanna know a secret?
I think you do … or at least it seems like the publishing industry thinks you do—if the number of books on the supposed secret life (and sometimes lives) of people, places and things is any indication.
I was doing some work in the library collection recently when I stumbled across a book called Overachievers: the secret lives of driven kids by Alexandra Robbins. I was intrigued. Robbins’ book is an in depth look into the world of high school students and the pressures they face to achieve (and achieve and achieve). The book examines the pressure and expectations that students grapple with and how they impact those students, their families and the school system. Interesting reading for teens, parents of teens and anyone with an eye for books on social trends.
As much as this book itself caught my attention, it was the details about the author’s other writing that caught my eye in terms of this post. Robbins has also penned Pledged: the secret life of sororities and Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones, the Ivy League and hidden paths of power. Clearly this young author has something about secrets—but she’s not the only one.
It seems like the secret—or the promise of its revealing, I guess—is a popular way to market books. Whether it’s language (The Secret Life of Words: how English became English by Henry Hitchings), architecture ( The Secret Lives of Buildings: from the ruins of the Parthenon to the Vegas Strip in thirteen stories by Edward Hollis), museums (Dry Storeroom no. 1 : the secret life of the Natural History Museum by Richard Fortey) or the sort of thing you might expect to only discuss in secret: adultery (To Love, Honor, and Betray: the secret life of suburban wives by Adrienne Lopez and Stephanie Gertler).
Quirk Books—whose name you may recognize from their popular classic novel mashup Pride and Prejudice and Zombies)—have come up with a whole series of books around this theme, all billed around the idea of “what your teachers never told you”. They’ve published titles on great authors, great composers, great filmmakers, great artists (painters and sculptors) and US presidents (“now with Obama!” the library copy says).
Finally, the most intriguing thing I discovered upon following up on this trend of secret lives, is that it seems to be huge for telling stories of science, and nature. I leave you with a list of titles from the library catalogue. Who knew mother nature had so much to hide?!
The Secret Life of Lobsters : how fishermen and scientists are unraveling the mysteries of our favorite crustacean by Trevor Corson.
The Secret Life of Dust : from the cosmos to the kitchen counter, the big consequences of little things by Hannah Holmes.
Watching Giants : the secret lives of whales by Elin Kelsey.
The Secret Life of Sharks : a leading marine biologist reveals the mysteries of shark behavior by A. Peter Klimley.
The Secret Life of Germs : observations and lessons from a microbe hunter by Philip M. Tierno.
