The Dictionary of Lost Words- A Novel by Pip Williams
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Web ID: 15417591Beautifully Heartbreaking
Pip Williams wrote a beautifully heartbreaking tale. It was interesting to read how the original Oxford Dictionary makers possibly chose words and their corresponding definitions. I fell in love with Esme, Lizzy, and Ditte. All three ladies led vastly different lives and were mostly content with the cards life dealt them. The prose Williams used became more sophisticated as Esme grew older and learned more complex words. It was beautiful prose, however the sophistication did lead me to put the book down sometimes to absorb better what I just read. As beautiful as it was, Williams ripped my heart out three times. These moments were unexpected, brought me to tears, and continued to attach me to the women of the story. It is a tale I cannot stop thinking about.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Storytelling and Message
This coming-of-age story lets readers follow along as a witty, lovable protagonist finds her passion for words, especially the ones that aren't written down. Rich characters and themes make this book thoroughly enjoyable, and the feminist twist on the writing of a dictionary, of all things, is truly unique. Williams really shows readers the power of words and leaves us thinking about their importance.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
what words would you leave out and WHY
Every decision bears some weight belonging to the person who will make the decision, even if it's just which words will be entered into a dictionary and which ones won't. This is a premise in every day life that most of us accept without question, but shouldn't we question it? Esme starts as a young child collecting the words that her father and his team reject from the Oxford Dictionary. At some point, she realizes that most of these "lost" words have bearing on similar subjects that a team of men might consider inconsequential. She becomes determined to make sure these words do not stay lost. The storyline is unique. Pip Williams obviously gave considerable thought to the story of Esme and her efforts. A great story but also pretty educational.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Historical Fiction
uch an interesting premise for a book. The timeframe wasn’t all that long ago, the brink of the First World War and yet Pip Williams reminds us how women were treated. They weren’t able to have the same opportunities as men and couldn’t imagine having the same jobs.. yet Esme’s father is one of the great scholars creating the first dictionary. She is surrounded by great minds and learns from them every day. One particular word is cut out of the dictionary and it falls to the ground. Esme is fascinated by the word and has to find out it’s meaning. Once she finds out it’s meaning, she starts to collect the other discarded words. As she grows up she sees that many of the words that are eliminated have to do with women and their experiences. She attempts to create a book of lost words. In her quest to find the words, she has to leave her comfortable setting at Oxford. She has to leave her father.. but leaving enables her to meet the people and learn their stories. It’s a whole new world for her and she can never go back. Williams tells such a beautiful story.. the historical timeline and an honest telling of a woman’s life, is so original. I think that is my favorite part, the story is one of a kind. This story was written so well.. I tell everyone to read it because it is so special. This was a five star read for me. I don’t reread many books but I might reread this one. I am sure there are many things I missed.. Thank you to Netgalley & the author for my copy for an honest review. It was an absolute pleasure to do so. I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did..
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Not a favorite book for the book club
The story was easy to read. The fact that women and common folk were not included in the creation of the Oxford dictionary was thought provoking. Not an uncommon notion for the era. In our book club , several people said they quit the book and only a couple of people enjoyed the story. We did have a good discussion about the social issues involved in the story. Certainly try the book for yourself.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A Multi-Layered Story You Won't Be Able to Put Dow
I found myself getting quite anxious as the end of THE DICTIONARY OF LOST WORDS approached. Mostly because I didn’t want it to end. But also because I was worried about the fate of one of the characters. And unsure how the author could end the book in a way that satisfied me. But there was no need to worry and it turned out to be a five star read. Let me explain why by first explaining how I see the ingenious structure of this unique piece of historical fiction. The foundation or backdrop is the detail-rich story of the precise, painstaking, and decades-long effort to create the first Oxford English Dictionary (OED). That’s the one that not only includes definitions and pronunciation, but also historical citations of each word’s use and origin. A fascinating story in itself! Then, woven in and out of THAT story are some of the important, contemporary issues of the era. Like the growing movement in England to grant women the right to vote, the country's starkly divided class system, and the impact of World War I. Don’t miss the two parallel timelines included at the end of the book which document the actual historical events referenced in the novel and the milestones in the creation of the OED. And finally, on top of all this is the wonderful story of protagonist Esme Nicoll, a hero you will come to love. She is entirely fictional, the daughter of one of the editors (also fictional) of the OED. At the start of the book, it’s 1886 and Esme is just six years old, a bright, motherless child who forms an unusually close bond with her father and his work world. As well as with her chief caretaker, Lizzie, maid to the OED’s chief editor. By the end of the book, Esme is long dead and more than a hundred years have passed. We follow Esme’s growing up, her friendship with an actress, a bit of romance, her growing competence, and her increasing preference for work over the traditional roles expected of women of her time. One of the things I loved best about this skillfully written book is Pip Williams’s ability to subtly raise important questions for me to ponder. Do men and women use words differently? If men control the creation of scholarly resources and references, how does that impact women? If women DO contribute but men keep the written records, will any of their contributions be remembered? If society limits opportunities for women, how much of their knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom is lost over time? And finally, how is all of this magnified when class is added to the equation? It's a very smart book. Don't miss it!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
For all Word and strong female protagonists.
Es e grows up around men who collect words for the first Oxford Dictionary. But she soon discovers that words relating to women and common people are often overlooked. So she begins her search for these lost words. Esme is a wonderful character set in the women's suffrage movement and I was cheering her on. The novel is well-researched and written. I loved it..
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com