Bridgman reviewed The Liar's Dictionary by Eley Williams
Review of "The Liar's Dictionary" on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
[a:Eley Williams|15163114|Eley Williams|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1617582781p2/15163114.jpg]'s [b:The Liar's Dictionary|53284801|The Liar's Dictionary|Eley Williams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1594618149l/53284801.SX50.jpg|64196454] is a fun book to read. She is genuinely funny, but not in that jokey way that wears you out when reading books by comedians about parenthood and marriage. This book is about words, which sounds dull, but it's not.
There are two stories, sort of, and they're about two people with strong connections who are separated by 120 years. They're neat stories but they're almost secondary to the writing, which is fine.
The Liar's Dictionary reminded me of [a:Tom Rachman|3066198|Tom Rachman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1516813110p2/3066198.jpg]'s [b:The Imperfectionists|6834410|The Imperfectionists|Tom Rachman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327935648l/6834410.SY75.jpg|7045390] in some ways, the main one being that I didn't want either to end. It's also the only book you'll read that uses words you don't know the meaning of that won't make you feel bad about that. (Examples: psithurism: the sound of rustling leaves; apricide: the killing of boars; …
[a:Eley Williams|15163114|Eley Williams|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1617582781p2/15163114.jpg]'s [b:The Liar's Dictionary|53284801|The Liar's Dictionary|Eley Williams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1594618149l/53284801.SX50.jpg|64196454] is a fun book to read. She is genuinely funny, but not in that jokey way that wears you out when reading books by comedians about parenthood and marriage. This book is about words, which sounds dull, but it's not.
There are two stories, sort of, and they're about two people with strong connections who are separated by 120 years. They're neat stories but they're almost secondary to the writing, which is fine.
The Liar's Dictionary reminded me of [a:Tom Rachman|3066198|Tom Rachman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1516813110p2/3066198.jpg]'s [b:The Imperfectionists|6834410|The Imperfectionists|Tom Rachman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327935648l/6834410.SY75.jpg|7045390] in some ways, the main one being that I didn't want either to end. It's also the only book you'll read that uses words you don't know the meaning of that won't make you feel bad about that. (Examples: psithurism: the sound of rustling leaves; apricide: the killing of boars; runkle: to wrinkle or crease; apricity: the warmth of the sun in winter.)
Excerpt:
My task for the day was to look over David Swansby's efforts at digitising the text of Swansby's New Encyclopaedic Dictionary. It was his dream to honour the family name and the scope and vision of his forefather editors by updating the unfinished dictionary and putting it all online for free. He spoke of this as a noble project, for the betterment of humanity, and as a way of securing the Swansby legacy as something accomplished and celebrated rather than a noble damp squib.
Privately, I looked up the entry for hubris (n.).
