Reviews
"Teeming with knowledge and alive with insights. Winchester handles humor and awe with modesty and cunning. His devotion to the story is the more eloquent for the cool-handedness of its telling. His prose is supremely readable, admirable in its lucid handling of lexicographical mire."--William F. Buckley, New York Times Book Review "The extraordinary story of the making of the Oxford English Dictionary is a subject perfectly suited to Winchester's magpie mind.... Winchester's account is an affectionate and frankly partisan study of the making of a great dictionary. It is also an offbeat portrait of an extraordinary society."--Robert McCrumm, Los Angeles Times "Devastatingly brilliant.... Fascinating, witty, extremely well-written.... Winchester makes words exciting. He obviously loves them."--Rochelle O'Gorman, The Boston Globe "Winchester brings to life the trials and tribulations of creating the OED, particularly the never-dull personalities of those who were involved. Moreover, he delightfully, admiringly gives us an appreciation of the wonderfully adaptive, ever-expanding English language.... A story that could have been stultifyingly dull is fascinatingly told, with a verve and reverence for the English language that would have won huzzahs from Shakspere (Murray's favored spelling) himself."-- Forbes Magazine "As inspiring as it is informative, Simon Winchester's history of what it took to assemble the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary is both a dazzling detective story and a poignant group portrait. A must-read for every language lover."-- Seattle Times "An inspired story of conflict, madness, genius, and inspiration so amusing that at times it reads like fiction--but it isn't."-- Library Journal (starred review) "Like Longitude ...a story of extraordinary endurance."--Clive Davis, The Wilson Quarterly "Winchester tells the story with great verve in an easy-going, anecdotal style that's delectably readable."-- Christian Science Monitor "Full of engaging characters and incidents."-- Wall Street Journal "Winchester has no peer at illuminating massive and complex endeavors through the quirks and foibles of the brilliant and powerful personalities who carry them out."-- Chicago Sun Times "A magnificent account, swift and compelling, of obsession, scholarship, and ultimately, philanthropy of the first magnitude."-- Kirkus Review (starred review), "Teeming with knowledge and alive with insights. Winchester handles humor and awe with modesty and cunning. His devotion to the story is the more eloquent for the cool-handedness of its telling. His prose is supremely readable, admirable in its lucid handling of lexicographical mire."--William F. Buckley, New York Times Book Review "The extraordinary story of the making of the Oxford English Dictionary is a subject perfectly suited to Winchester's magpie mind.... Winchester's account is an affectionate and frankly partisan study of the making of a great dictionary. It is also an offbeat portrait of an extraordinary society."--Robert McCrumm, Los Angeles Times "Devastatingly brilliant.... Fascinating, witty, extremely well-written.... Winchester makes words exciting. He obviously loves them."--Rochelle O'Gorman, The Boston Globe "Winchester brings to life the trials and tribulations of creating the OED, particularly the never-dull personalities of those who were involved. Moreover, he delightfully, admiringly gives us an appreciation of the wonderfully adaptive, ever-expanding English language.... A story that could have been stultifyingly dull is fascinatingly told, with a verve and reverence for the English language that would have won huzzahs from Shakspere (Murray's favored spelling) himself."--Forbes Magazine "As inspiring as it is informative, Simon Winchester's history of what it took to assemble the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary is both a dazzling detective story and a poignant group portrait. A must-read for every language lover."--Seattle Times "An inspired story of conflict, madness, genius, and inspiration so amusing that at times it reads like fiction--but it isn't."--Library Journal (starred review) "Like Longitude...a story of extraordinary endurance."--Clive Davis, The Wilson Quarterly "Winchester tells the story with great verve in an easy-going, anecdotal style that's delectably readable."--Christian Science Monitor "Full of engaging characters and incidents."--Wall Street Journal "Winchester has no peer at illuminating massive and complex endeavors through the quirks and foibles of the brilliant and powerful personalities who carry them out."--Chicago Sun Times "A magnificent account, swift and compelling, of obsession, scholarship, and ultimately, philanthropy of the first magnitude."--Kirkus Review (starred review), this is history brought to life. If you love words, this will be the most fascinating book you'll read all year, 'He has given us a useful and entertaining study that provokes furtherreflections'Leofranc Holford-Strevens, The London Review of Books, This is a book to savour and linger over ... a book that delights and instructs in equal measure. A must for all those who use and love the language., 'An absorbing and entertaining history...In brinin to life the deomcratic principles and essential humanity of this extraordinary project, Simon Winchester's captivating book stresses the qualities which made the Oxford English Dictionary the remarkable institution that it remains today.'Tom Penn, Times Literary Supplement, "Teeming with knowledge and alive with insights. Winchester handles humor and awe with modesty and cunning. His devotion to the story is the more eloquent for the cool-handedness of its telling. His prose is supremely readable, admirable in its lucid handling of lexicographical mire."--William F. Buckley, New York Times Book Review"The extraordinary story of the making of the Oxford English Dictionary is a subject perfectly suited to Winchester's magpie mind.... Winchester's account is an affectionate and frankly partisan study of the making of a great dictionary. It is also an offbeat portrait of an extraordinary society."--Robert McCrumm, Los Angeles Times"Devastatingly brilliant.... Fascinating, witty, extremely well-written.... Winchester makes words exciting. He obviously loves them."--Rochelle O'Gorman, The Boston Globe"Winchester brings to life the trials and tribulations of creating the OED, particularly the never-dull personalities of those who were involved. Moreover, he delightfully, admiringly gives us an appreciation of the wonderfully adaptive, ever-expanding English language.... A story that could have been stultifyingly dull is fascinatingly told, with a verve and reverence for the English language that would have won huzzahs from Shakspere (Murray's favored spelling) himself."--Forbes Magazine"As inspiring as it is informative, Simon Winchester's history of what it took to assemble the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary is both a dazzling detective story and a poignant group portrait. A must-read for every language lover."--Seattle Times"An inspired story of conflict, madness, genius, and inspiration so amusing that at times it reads like fiction--but it isn't."--Library Journal (starred review)"Like Longitude...a story of extraordinary endurance."--Clive Davis, The Wilson Quarterly"Winchester tells the story with great verve in an easy-going, anecdotal style that's delectably readable."--Christian Science Monitor"Full of engaging characters and incidents."--Wall Street Journal"Winchester has no peer at illuminating massive and complex endeavors through the quirks and foibles of the brilliant and powerful personalities who carry them out."--Chicago Sun Times"A magnificent account, swift and compelling, of obsession, scholarship, and ultimately, philanthropy of the first magnitude."--Kirkus Review (starred review), Responsible for first conceiving the dictionary and then seeing it to publication were an extraordinary collection of scholars, editors and keen volunteers. Winchester brings many of them to life in his book with great warmth and admiration., 'the account is engaging and its conclusion a triumph...an absorbingaccount...an entertaining narrative.'John Mullan, The Scotsman, 'He has given us a useful and entertaining study that provokes further reflections'Leofranc Holford-Strevens, The London Review of Books, 'a breezy, engaging and mercifully concise account of a mighty endeavour'John Preston, Sunday Telegraph
