A kleptomaniac, the nephew of a French Emperor, the creator of an imaginary land inhabited by small hairy creatures, a homicidal lunatic, an Esperanto enthusiast, the man who introduced the camel to the Wild West, the captain of an all-ladies sculling team, a hermit, and the son of a Scottish draper. Just who were these people and what connected them to the world's greatest dictionary? It was on New Year's morning, 1928, that an eruption of mad lexical glee from a battered old typewriter on a desk in Baltimore from the ...
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A kleptomaniac, the nephew of a French Emperor, the creator of an imaginary land inhabited by small hairy creatures, a homicidal lunatic, an Esperanto enthusiast, the man who introduced the camel to the Wild West, the captain of an all-ladies sculling team, a hermit, and the son of a Scottish draper. Just who were these people and what connected them to the world's greatest dictionary? It was on New Year's morning, 1928, that an eruption of mad lexical glee from a battered old typewriter on a desk in Baltimore from the hands of Henry Louis Mencken sent news all across the USA of the long-awaited publication of the book that was to crown the English language undisputed monarch of the linguistic kingdom. From the Oxford-based project a total of 414,825 words, ten times as many as had hitherto been suspected of existing, had now been recognized and catalogued, the results of seventy years of Herculean effort by scholars, linguists, and thousands of ordinary and not-so-ordinary people. The Meaning of Everything is a readily accessible historical account of the making of the remarkable Oxford English Dictionary, leading up to the appointment of the first editor, James Murray, in 1879 through to its triumphant publication in 1928 and beyond. Brought to life by Simon Winchester's characteristic talent for story-telling, the achievement of making the dictionary is an unforgettable story, and is further enlivened by portraits of the myriad characters involved in its creation. From the context of early dictionaries and national projects of the Victorian Era, Simon Winchester leads his narrative through early attempts to create what was then expected to be a four-volume dictionary, the appointment of James Murray as editor, the unusual, never-before-attempted way in which the book was constructed, and the people and processes involved in the definition of thousands of words, to the triumphant publication of the dictionary and its adaptation to the age of technology. The profound impact the volumes had when they first appeared, the fame the dictionary has had in the eight decades since, and that it can be expected to have in years to come, receive full and fascinating treatment here at the pen of the best-selling author of The Surgeon of Crowthorne and The Map That Changed The World.
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Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $6.36, like new condition, Sold by Roger Lucas rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Horncastle, Lincs, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $9.45, good condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has hardback covers. Clean from markings. In good all round condition. Dust jacket in good condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 700grams, ISBN: 0198607024.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $33.23, like new condition, Sold by Alpha 2 Omega Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Southampton, HANTS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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Fine in Fine jacket. Fine condition. Oxford University Press, 2003. First edition-first printing(1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2). Dark brown hardback(gilt lettering to the spine, small nick on the edge of the cover) with Dj(two small nicks, crease and scratch on the edges of the Dj cover), both in fine condition. Illustrated inside the front and back cover, colour plans, b/w photos. The book is new with light shelf wear.277pp including List of illustrations, bibliography and further reading, index. a collectable first edition.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $2.19, very good condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. Though second-hand, the book is still in very good shape. Minimal signs of usage may include very minor creasing on the cover or on the spine.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $2.19, good condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $4.86, like new condition, Sold by Goldstone Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Ammanford, CARMS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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Fine. All orders are dispatched within 1 working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we are dedicated to recycling unwanted books on behalf of a number of UK charities who benefit from added revenue through the sale of their books plus huge savings in waste disposal. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $4.99, very good condition, Sold by Goldstone Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Ammanford, CARMS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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Very good. All orders are dispatched within 1 working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we are dedicated to recycling unwanted books on behalf of a number of UK charities who benefit from added revenue through the sale of their books plus huge savings in waste disposal. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $6.05, very good condition, Sold by Halcyon Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from LONDON, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything; the Story of the Oxford to cart. $6.18, like new condition, Sold by Balfour Books rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Sidmouth, DEVON, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Oxford University Press.
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Fine in Very Good jacket. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall Copy in brown cloth on boards in unclipped D/J. Jacket slightly creased along edges. Maps as front and rear end papers. Free of inscriptions. Clean and flat contenst. Appears unread.
Add this copy of The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford to cart. $9.19, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Atlanta rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Austell, GA, UNITED STATES, published 2003 by Oxford University Press, USA.
An excellent book with an incredibly in-depth study of the makings of the OED. I thought it was beautifully written and continually makes you want to read on. It strikes the perfect balance between biographical sections on the key figures and fascinating tracts on etymology. Most enjoyable was Winchester's style of writing which was very fluent, eloquent and introduced the reader to many new words throughout the book. (Ironically, I found it necessary to have a dictionary to hand to find the meaning to some of the words Winchester uses).
readinghabit
Dec 18, 2008
Great Read!!!
A wonderful behind-the-scenes story of the making of the OED. Mr. Winchester presents this great history in a very enjoyable and interesting manner. Well Done and highly recommended!
