Words Are Fascinating
What I read: The Liar’s Dictionary: A Novel by Eley Williams. Published January 25, 2021.
I have forever been fascinated by words. So, it is no surprise that when I read a good NPR review for this book, 'The Liar's Dictionary' Is A Delight From A To Z, I pre-ordered and consumed it as soon as I was able to download it to my Kindle.
While I loved it, I would not call it what some might refer to as an “easy read.” One of the features I love about reading on an electronic e-reader is the built-in ability to look up words in a dictionary with the press of a finger. Unless you possess a robust vocabulary far beyond my own, you will probably be looking up words throughout your reading of this clever and entertaining book. The vocabulary coupled with some creative prose construction create a compelling narrative, but not for the casual reader.
This is not a book review. I leave it to you to peruse the aforementioned NPR review and others. I will offer that it is an excellent book, captivating in its uniqueness and complex language used to the story’s advantage since the entire novel centers around words themselves.
But the words! I encountered so many new words while reading the book that I plan to read it again, more slowly the second time. I have a personal rule that I only look up three words in any single reading session. Otherwise, I feel the flow of the reading becomes interrupted and choppy and it throws me off the storyline if it is a novel or the crux of the information if it is nonfiction. There were pages on which I could have looked up a dozen words. A return to the book with the intention of using it as a word study vehicle will be fun now that I know the story.
A few of the countless new words and phrases I encountered within the first chapter or two are…
weasel word - a word used in order to evade or retreat from a direct or forthright statement or position
diplopia - a disorder of vision in which two images of a single object are seen (as from unequal action of the eye muscles)
roseate – (1) resembling a rose especially in color; (2) overly optimistic - viewed favorably
While I am listing some definitions here, it turns out there is a word for a word lover like me and like the person I consider the primary character in The Liar’s Dictionary.
logophile - a lover of words
(Definitions from Merriam-Webster dictionary.)
If you do not read on a Kindle or another e-reader device or app that allows easy word lookup, check out my favorite website, onelook.com. I use this site daily. Usually many times. With one search the site scans more than one thousand separate dictionaries and returns results from various general and specialized dictionaries. Extremely useful site – bookmark worthy.
Words, along with quotes and aphorisms, have always interested me. There is something exciting about learning a new word or reading a short, concise chunk of wisdom or insight that packs a punch when longer forms might not.
Another book that has remained among my top 10 favorites is The World in a Phrase: A Brief History of the Aphorism by James Geary. I consider this book a masterpiece. It chronicles and expounds upon notable aphorisms from the ancient wisdom of Lao-Tzu and Buddha to the more contemporary Barbara Kruger. Along the way you learn a bit of history, biographical backgrounds, and chunks of hearty information that satisfies in a way few books do. It is a word person’s treasure trove.
For a lovely homage to words, legendary poet, lyricist and screenwriter Javed Akhtar delivered a moving, short TED Talk, The Gift of Words (In Hindi with English subtitles), in which he talks about “words as magical tools that carry meanings” and asks the audience why we seem to be losing our power to use words. Akhtar asks,
What is the power of a word? Be it a mother’s lullaby, a politician’s speech, love letters from your beloved, or a complaint against someone, a protest call, anger, sadness, happiness, surprise, belonging, alienation, anything in the world. Any feeling in the world, any emotion, any reaction, until it is expressed in a word it will not have any meaning for you. Forget getting across to anyone else.
Words are not thoughts, just like bricks are not homes. But houses are made with bricks. If you have less bricks, you will make a small house. The more words you have, the clearer your thoughts, and the more clearly you can convey them.
…
So, language is a powerful thing. Words are extremely powerful. But by themselves they are neither good nor bad. If we start loving words and understand their power, we would realize that everything that happens in the world is because of words.
I could not say it better myself. Thus, I will stop typing words, end this post, and bid you a good day.