Scan barcode
heidihaverkamp's review against another edition
4.0
A delightful book about the people who write dictionaries for a living, namely at Merriam Webster, and the strange, often hilarious work they do and letters they receive from their concerned public. A real treat for word lovers, or anyone or finds strange, unusual jobs interesting.
bailey_bea's review against another edition
5.0
"Etymological fallacy is the worst sort of pedantry: a meaningless personal opinion trying to dress itself up as concern for preserving historical principles. It misses that language change itself is a historical principle: a language that doesn't change is a dead language, and as much as etymological fallacists seem to love the purity of Latin, you'll notice that none of them have abandoned that whore English for it."
Word by Word is a love letter to the English language, and I couldn't get enough. I have a whole new appreciation for dictionaries and the tenacious lexicographers who bring them into existence. And while I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I'm not cut out to be a lexicographer, I could kiss Stamper for illuminating the craft of lexicography with wit, intelligence, and panache.
Word by Word is a love letter to the English language, and I couldn't get enough. I have a whole new appreciation for dictionaries and the tenacious lexicographers who bring them into existence. And while I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I'm not cut out to be a lexicographer, I could kiss Stamper for illuminating the craft of lexicography with wit, intelligence, and panache.
zoot's review against another edition
3.0
This book is one of the few I rate low but with the caveat that MY PROBLEM WITH THE BOOK WAS ENTIRELY READER-CENTERED. It was user-error, not author-error. This was just a struggle for me for a lot of different reasons. First? I am very bored by grammar and etymology and so those sections were a struggle for me. While the author makes it entertaining, it's hard to get through to someone who just is not interested. I actually ended up switching to the audiobook which I 100% recommend. It was so much easier to digest than the written form.
That said - I really enjoyed the other parts. I loved the methodology of how definitions come to be, I like the interesting stories about specific words and their change in modern time. I like a lot of the author's self-deprecating quips because it made me feel a little less intimidated by the book. There are a lot of people who rightfully will love this book, it is informative and well-written. I just struggled with a lot of it.
That said - I really enjoyed the other parts. I loved the methodology of how definitions come to be, I like the interesting stories about specific words and their change in modern time. I like a lot of the author's self-deprecating quips because it made me feel a little less intimidated by the book. There are a lot of people who rightfully will love this book, it is informative and well-written. I just struggled with a lot of it.
bellamonster's review against another edition
5.0
Y‘all ever thought about how a dictionary is written? Stamper will tell you in great detail AND make it fun.
c_sandman's review against another edition
5.0
As a fellow language-lover, I really enjoyed this book!
the_enobee's review against another edition
4.0
Highly recommended for all logophiles and dictionary lovers. Word by Word is both highly informative and incredibly entertaining. I really hope Korey Stamper continues to write as I have feeling she would be a blast to read regardless of the subject matter. Bravo!
rackncheese's review against another edition
5.0
As a Linguist and life-long lover of language, this book was like cold water in a desert. But, this is also a book I would recommend to the layperson, non-linguist. It's perfect for experts and novices alike. It was hilarious, informative, and totally a joy to read.