Scan barcode
sbox's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While I did get quite emotional at parts, and found the story engaging at times, it didn’t take a strong enough hold on me. I think trying to fit in all the historical check points, along with a lot of “womanhood” check points, made the plot a bit lackluster for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse
beautifulpaxielreads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Pip Williams' The Dictionary of Lost Words is one of the most meaningful, thought-provoking novels I have ever read, and yet there were parts of it that I struggled with.
As the title suggests, this is a book about words, more specifically those words that are not considered important enough to be compiled into the first-ever edition of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). Since the task of compiling the OED is largely left to older white men, inevitably their ingrained biases ensure that the dictionary is skewed towards a male view of the world, and this is writ large when it comes to the male attitude to women.
In the year 1901, one of the OED's loyal fans discovered that the word "bondmaid" was missing from the dictionary. It is from this factual nugget that Pip Williams has constructed the fictional character and heroine of the novel, Esme Nicoll. The story of the novel is the story of Esme's life, covering late Victorian-era Great Britain to the First World War.
The novel was written almost entirely (aside from the last two chapters ) from Esme's POV, and this was where I had the most difficulty. Even though I could see Williams had crafted Esme with great care, and I (mostly) liked and sympathised with her, she seemed passive in many ways and I struggled to truly understand her motivations and feelings.
In terms of other characters, I most liked Harry, Esme's widowed father, Edith "Ditte" Thompson, Esme's mentor and mother figure, and Lizzie, a serving maid at Murray household where Esme spends her childhood and whom Esme eventuallydevelops a close bond with .
I also had some issues with the novel's structure and pacing, which seemed uneven to me. Even though the beginning of each chapter stated the year and the month in which it was set, the time jumps could be hours, days, weeks, or even months at a time. These jumps were not always consistent, leaving me confused as to just how much time had passed between the beginning and end of a chapter. It kind of felt a bit lumpy.
Ultimately, it was the themes of this novel that I most strongly resonated with - the way certain words were defined to degrade not only by gender but by social status, the way words could come to mean more than one thing, the development of slang and curse words, and most poignantly, the inadequacy of words to describe the human experience.
This is a novel that, to me, asks two fundamental questions: Whose words matter? And almost more importantly, who gets to decide?
A moving, thought-provoking read.
As the title suggests, this is a book about words, more specifically those words that are not considered important enough to be compiled into the first-ever edition of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). Since the task of compiling the OED is largely left to older white men, inevitably their ingrained biases ensure that the dictionary is skewed towards a male view of the world, and this is writ large when it comes to the male attitude to women.
In the year 1901, one of the OED's loyal fans discovered that the word "bondmaid" was missing from the dictionary. It is from this factual nugget that Pip Williams has constructed the fictional character and heroine of the novel, Esme Nicoll. The story of the novel is the story of Esme's life, covering late Victorian-era Great Britain to the First World War.
The novel was written almost entirely (
In terms of other characters, I most liked Harry, Esme's widowed father, Edith "Ditte" Thompson, Esme's mentor and mother figure, and Lizzie, a serving maid at Murray household where Esme spends her childhood and whom Esme eventually
I also had some issues with the novel's structure and pacing, which seemed uneven to me. Even though the beginning of each chapter stated the year and the month in which it was set, the time jumps could be hours, days, weeks, or even months at a time. These jumps were not always consistent, leaving me confused as to just how much time had passed between the beginning and end of a chapter. It kind of felt a bit lumpy.
Ultimately, it was the themes of this novel that I most strongly resonated with - the way certain words were defined to degrade not only by gender but by social status, the way words could come to mean more than one thing, the development of slang and curse words, and most poignantly, the inadequacy of words to describe the human experience.
This is a novel that, to me, asks two fundamental questions: Whose words matter? And almost more importantly, who gets to decide?
A moving, thought-provoking read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Death, Death of parent, Pregnancy, War, Sexism, and Grief
Moderate: Colonisation, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Sexual content, Confinement, Bullying, Blood, and Physical abuse
Minor: Alcohol, Slavery, Racism, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexual harassment
This novel takes place during the rise of the first wave of feminism in the early 20th century. It includes a discussion and descriptions oftheothergrl's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This is a wonderful story about womanhood. The main character feels incredibly real, not that she is a meticulously and deeply explored personality, but that she is a deeply explored woman. I think that's what made this story so heartbreaking and tearjerking, the way you find yourself in the story, how you feel deeply for every character as if they are your own dad or your own best friend. Esme leaves room for all of us within her, to experience what she does, to love and lose as she does.
The other thing I love about this book is the way it's told through the words Esme collects. Just as she's starting to explore adulthood and rebel a little, she learns vulgar words, which I loved! As we explores life -sex, love, loss, independence -we do so through the words we learn along the way, that define and make sense of our experiences. The way the story unfolds as her dictionary grows is very poignant and effective, I cried so many times reading this! This book was such a wonderful experience.
The other thing I love about this book is the way it's told through the words Esme collects. Just as she's starting to explore adulthood and rebel a little, she learns vulgar words, which I loved! As we explores life -sex, love, loss, independence -we do so through the words we learn along the way, that define and make sense of our experiences. The way the story unfolds as her dictionary grows is very poignant and effective, I cried so many times reading this! This book was such a wonderful experience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexism, and Classism
Moderate: Abortion, War, Alcohol, Child abuse, Death, and Cursing
Minor: Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts
arayo's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Pregnancy, War, Classism, Child abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content, Abortion, and Violence
purplepenning's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, War, and Classism
Moderate: Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Blood, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Death, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Alcohol, Child abuse, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Cursing, and Forced institutionalization
elva_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Violence, and Child abuse
chattie_the_mad_chatter's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
A delightful exploration of the joy of words, their power, their importance and what it reveals about society with words that are left out.
A coming of age story, full of love in an unusual found family amid the Rise of feminisim as the new dictionary; the Oxford dictionary is written and published.
Our protagonist was very easy to relate to and the Book is full of characters that you grow found of, love and wish to avoid! The historical detail and weaving of fact with fiction is exquisite, you immerse yourself in this world. Despite huge historical significant events like the Suffragette movement and World War 1, it is the words and love of words that remain, in focus and at the heart of the story.
A coming of age story, full of love in an unusual found family amid the Rise of feminisim as the new dictionary; the Oxford dictionary is written and published.
Our protagonist was very easy to relate to and the Book is full of characters that you grow found of, love and wish to avoid! The historical detail and weaving of fact with fiction is exquisite, you immerse yourself in this world. Despite huge historical significant events like the Suffragette movement and World War 1, it is the words and love of words that remain, in focus and at the heart of the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Mental illness
Moderate: Child abuse, War, Sexism, Death, and Pregnancy
tremayna's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Cursing, Death, War, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexism
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Abortion, and Misogyny
bookdragon1485's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
I was excited to read this book for my book club……unfortunately this book was just not my cup of tea. While some small parts were interesting, a majority of the book was slow & predictable with flowery words. I can see the potential & the core of the story is beautiful but sadly this book overall disappointed me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Grief, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Death, and War
lenchen25's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy, Death, Child death, Child abuse, Abortion, War, Violence, and Grief
Minor: Miscarriage