Book
The dictionary of lost words : a novel / Pip Williams.
"The Dictionary of Lost Words is a work of fiction. All incidents and dialogue, and all characters with the exception of some well-known historical figures, are products of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Before the lost word, there was another. It arrived at the Scriptorium in a second-hand envelope, the old address crossed out and Dr Murray, Sunnyside, Oxford, written in its place. It was Da's job to open the post and mine to sit on his lap, like a queen on her throne, and help him ease each word out of its folded cradle. He'd tell me what pile to put it on and sometimes he'd pause, cover my hand with his, and guide my finger up and down and around the letters, sounding them into my ear. He'd say the word, and I would echo it, then he'd tell me what it meant"-- Provided by publisher.
Motherless, Esme spends her childhood in the Scriptorium, a garden shed in Oxford where her father and a team of dedicated lexicographers are collecting words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. One day a slip of paper containing the word bondmaid flutters beneath the table. She rescues the slip, and is told that the word means "slave girl." Learning that words relating to women's and common folks' experiences often go unrecorded, Esme begins to collect other words discarded by the dictionary men. As she grows up, Esme begins in earnest to search out words for her own dictionary: the Dictionary of Lost Words. -- adapted from jacket
Record details
- ISBN: 9780593160190
- ISBN: 0593160193
- Physical Description: xiv, 376 pages : map ; 24 cm
- Edition: First U.S. edition.
- Publisher: New York : Ballantine Books, 2021.
- Copyright: ©2021
Content descriptions
| General Note: | "Originally published in Australia by Affirm Press in 2020." -- title page verso. |
| Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references. |
| Formatted Contents Note: | Prologue: February 1886 -- Part 1: 1887-1896. Batten-distrustful -- Part 2: 1897-1901. Distrustfully-kyx -- Part 3: 1902-1907. Lap-nywe -- Part 4: 1907-1913. Polygenous-sorrow -- Part 5: 1914-1915. Speech-sullen -- Part 6: 1928. Wise-wyzen -- Epilogue: Adelaide, 1989. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Oxford English dictionary > Fiction. Words > Fiction. Reading > Fiction. Fathers and daughters > Fiction. Lexicographers > Fiction. |
| Genre: | Biographical fiction. Novels. |
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray County Library | F WIL (Text) | 2901847521 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Adair County Public Library | A F Williams (Text) | 34029002558475 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Camden County Library District - Osage Beach | FIC WILLIAMS (Text) | 31320003796369 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Cape Girardeau Public Library | WIL (Text) | 33042004746528 | Adult Fiction | Checked out | 05/03/2024 |
| Carthage Public Library | FIC Williams, Pip (Text) | 34MO2001809387 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Crawford County Library-Bourbon | F WIL (Text) | 33431000473320 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Crawford County Library-Recklein Memorial-Cuba | F WIL (Text) | 33431000426757 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Heartland Regional Library - Belle | F WIL (Text) | 35555002317768 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Heartland Regional Library - Eldon | F WIL (Text) | 35555002317776 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Heartland Regional Library - Iberia | F WIL (Text) | 35555002317750 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Heartland Regional Library - Vienna | F WIL (Text) | 35555002317743 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Howard County Public Library | F/Wor (Text) | 34658000184064 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Jefferson County Library-Arnold | F WILLIAMS Pip (Text) | 30061000283339 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Jefferson County Library-Windsor | F WILLIAMS Pip (Text) | 30065000193935 | Fiction | Checked out | 05/08/2024 |
| Little Dixie - Main Library - Moberly | F WILLIAMS (Text) | 200460767+ | Adult Fiction Shelves | Available | - |
| Livingston County Library - Main Library | WILLIAMS (Text) | 2601947322 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Neosho Newton - Neosho | WILLIAMS, PIP (Text) | 34162002107777 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| North Kansas City Public Library | FICTION WILLIAMS 2021 (Text) | 0001002447504 | Fiction | Checked out | 05/16/2024 |
| Riverside Regional-Perryville | F WIL (Text) | 30000005526250 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Rolla Public Library | FIC WIL (Text) | 38256101846016 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Scenic Regional-Hermann | FIC WIL (Text) | 3007270146 | Fiction | Checked out | 05/16/2024 |
| Scenic Regional-Owensville | FIC WIL (Text) | 3007270138 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Scenic Regional-Union | FIC WIL (Text) | 3007270154 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Scenic Regional-Warrenton | FIC WIL (Text) | 300727012+ | Fiction | Available | - |
| Seymour Community Library | Historical Fiction WILLIAMS, P. 2021 (Text) | 34193000021408 | Historical Fiction | In transit | - |
| St. Joseph - East Hills Library | F WIL (Text) | 32002005602766 | Adult Fiction | Checked out | 05/10/2024 |
| Stone County-Blue Eye | F WIL (Text) | 31358001329502 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| Texas County - Cabool | Fic Williams (Text) | 38350101382914 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Washington Public Library | F WIL (Text) | 3151236049 | Fiction | Available | - |
| Webb City Public Library | Fic Williams, Pip (Text) | 38262300006001 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
| West Plains Public Library | FIC WIL (Text) | 38268201319422 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
