Table with searchable string fields

[Vadim]

Hi,

I have a table, which is loaded once and never updated. One of its
columns is string (titles up to 100 chars). The content of this column
will be searched as the whole value (select * from books where title =
'Effective C++';) or as a single word (select * from books where title
like '%C++%';). The table contains millions raws.

What is the effective design?
Is creating index for my string column is sufficient?
Do I need index for all 100 chars, if most of the time I have no more
than 30-40 chars?
Maybe I need FULLTEXT index?

Thanks a lot for your help!

Vadim