The Liar's Dictionary

Locations
Call Number: Adult Book / Large Print / Fiction / Historical / Williams, Eley, Large Print Fiction / Williams, Eley
On Shelf At: Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Large Print / Fiction / Historical / Williams, Eley	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown Large Print 4-week checkout	Large Print Fiction / Williams, Eley	4-week checkout	Due 05-19-2024

Mountweazel n. the phenomenon of false entries within dictionaries and works of reference. Often used as a safeguard against copyright infringement. Peter Winceworth is a lexicographer in Victorian-era London, toiling away at the letter 'S' for a multi-volume Encyclopaedic Dictionary. Secretly, he begins to insert unauthorized fictitious entries into the dictionary in an attempt to assert some artistic freedom. In the present day, Mallory is a young intern employed by the same publisher. Her task is to uncover these mountweazels before the dictionary is digitized. She also has to contend with threatening phone calls from an anonymous caller. Why, she wonders, is the change in the definition of 'marriage' so upsetting to the caller? And does the caller really intend for the publisher's staff to 'burn in hell'? As these two narratives, characters and times entwine, both Winceworth and Mallory discover how they might negotiate the complexities of the nonsensical, relentless, untrustworthy, hoax-strewn and undefinable path we call life. An exhilarating debut from a formidably brilliant young writer, The Liar's Dictionary celebrates the rigidity, fragility, absurdity and joy of language.

REVIEWS & SUMMARIES

Library Journal Review
Booklist Review
Publishers Weekly Review
Summary / Annotation
Excerpt
Author Notes

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Word Lovers' Novel submitted by sdunav on June 11, 2021, 11:23am This is a delightful book if you're a word freak who doesn't mind looking up obscure definitions (smeuse, anyone?), and you enjoy neologisms and interesting metaphors. The narrative jumps back and forth from 1900 to the present day, which can be frustrating sometimes, as chapters sometimes end in cliffhangers.

Hard to believe that there wasn't a word for hangover (or the phrase morning-after) before 1900!