Steve says “I don’t think people appreciated all the
thought that has to go into the creation of a dictionary and of a particular
dictionary entry.”
In the book, the author, Kory Stamper, exactly tries to
address this lin by one of her colleagues at Merriam Webster.
The book is for those who love English and in particular
words and the way they find their place in the fat book called Dictionary. The book
starts off explaining who is a lexicographer and how does it feel to be one. As
the pages turn by, the author dives in the art of writing dictionaries, the way
each word is defined, analysed, pronounced etc. and the various tools they use
in achieving these. Over the pages, the history of dictionaries is also
strewed.
The writing is less technical and more anecdotal and snippet
based, rescuing the reader from monotony. The author tries to make the reader
appreciate the objective of dictionaries and makes you end up with a better
outlook and respect for the dictionary.
“Yes, this is what I want to do. I want to sit alone in
cubicle all day and think about words and not really talk to anybody else. That
sounds great!”
The book may read like the answer for “what is the job of a
lexicographer?”, but it evades from being an autobiography by making its
objective clear, i.e. why and how dictionaries are written. Overall, a highly
recommended read for those who love the language English and its words; a good
read for those who are interested in knowing about obscure things.
