A review by barnesstorming
The Writing of the Gods: The Race to Decode the Rosetta Stone by Edward Dolnick

4.0

A fascinating tale set mostly in the 19th century -- but it's not nearly the "race" that the title implies. Or, at least not one with the same sense of tension we get in a "Fast and Furious" film or an Olympic dash. But for fans of language, the evolution thereof, Egyptian history, or even just ancient world history (as the book frequently darts to Greece, Syria, or other countries who had run-ins with Egypt millennia ago), give this one a couple days of your time. You'll be rewarded. Two gems I'll take with me forever: First, when you see "Ye Olde Tavern" or whatnot on old signs, the "ye" used to be pronounced "the" and the Y symbol was just shorthand for engravers and sign-makers (much as early American printmakers would use "s" and "f" interchangeably). And second, I'll bet you didn't know that the words "Hickory Dickory Dock" meant "8, 9, 10" in ancient Celtic -- which makes sense out of what I assumed was nonsense in the phrase before "the mouse ran up the clock."