pickOk, I confess I bought this because I sometimes watch 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown 🫣 It was a pretty slow to start, and the whole thing was a bit contrived, but I enjoyed the word games, the etymologies and the insiders look at the work of lexicographers as well as the Oxford setting. A fun read.
pickDictionary editor Martha returns to Oxford an after the disappearance of her sister. Cryptic letters start arriving alluding to the mystery. Martha and her colleagues set to figuring out the puzzle, through a maze of words and Shakespearean clues. At times this lost me; I didn‘t have the headspace for the lexicography. The pace soon speeds up however, and the writing has a gentle cleverness that suits the Oxford setting
pickTook this Friday off before the holiday on Monday to give myself an extra long weekend. Spending it outside enjoying this beautifully breezy day.
pickThat was just fun!
Dizzying, fascinating, amusing, I think a big part of my enjoyment is the wit and humour of the writer (who also reads the audiobook), somehow casual and the epitome of precision by turns.
You get Stamper's experiences getting the job, learning the ropes, different parts of working on a dictionary as a lexicographer, definer and editor, different components involved in making a dictionary: 1/?
The death of the American Dream at its birth. This feels appropriate.
