Reviews

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, particularly given it started from the perspective of a child. It became quite a comfortable read, easy to pick up and read a few chapters, although it covered some emotional topics in parts. We grow up with the character, despite this I'm not sure I bought her character development and some aspects felt out of the blue (i.e. first relationship). On the whole, it was interesting read set to the backdrop of the suffrage movement and WW1 which got me thinking about the meaning of words and how language is and isn't controlled. Definitely thought provoking and educational given the care to match historical details.

Content Warnings

dandelionsoup85's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

spatterson12's review against another edition

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4.0

I can’t explain it, but this feels like it would fit nicely with A Little Princess and The Secret Garden.

I haven’t loved Reese picks lately, but this one felt like the original ones did

erindoublee's review against another edition

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4.0

Such a good story, spoiler, not a happy ending either.

I loved Esme’s description of words and her lifelong journey to define them. The story was so real to me, she made mistakes by 20th century standards is society, and she was real, and had flaws. I’ve found myself thinking about the story for several days and that’s when I know it’s a good one.

jjfirtik's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.75

elysahenegar's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This is an interesting work of historical fiction with a unique approach, following history through the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary. It's a sad book in many ways, and very thoughtful about how words reflect the lives of those who speak them and how compilations of any sort always suffer from human biases. If you like contemplative historical fiction, love words, or just want to think about history through a different lens, this book is worth checking out.

laurolly's review against another edition

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4.0

4 Stars. I really liked this book, I found myself giggling when reading about Esme’s childhood with the dictionary and was completely devastated whenever something would go awry. Williams has a gift of turning the mundane into something incredible and I love how this story follows the full life of our main character. I don’t tend to like historical fiction, and I did disconnect a little in the middle as the world was commented on in greater depth. However, overall I was pleasantly surprised and really liked how Esme would look at the human experience through the lens of the words we have created. This was very well researched and I felt I learnt a lot about the World War 1 era. Overall, I would be really keen to read more from Williams.

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