Review by liesthemoontells - The Dictionary of Lost Words

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liesthemoontells 's review for:

The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams

3.5

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This was competent, enjoyable historical fiction. The main character was flawed but endearing, and the interweaving of real historical events into her life, especially suffragism, was particularly well done.

I found the second half of this book

after the MC gives away her baby

far more compelling than the first half. This was the point where the book stopped treading water in historical accuracy about the creation of the dictionary, and allowed the MC high-stakes, emotional resonance beyond the historical framing.

I thought the author was successful in depicting a range of women's experiences across different classes, and I have respect for her ability to not get bogged down in her research and prevent it from letting her characters engage in her world building. She gave her characters engaging and believable personalities and allowed their actions space to impact the setting.

The long timeline of the book meant that it felt very jumpy, and it was hard to keep up with the sudden shifts in age. I also found the ending strange - rushed, abrupt, and not entirely earned.

Overall this was a decent book, but it didn't leave much of an impact on me.

Content Warnings