The perfect gift for knowledgable friends

books:


	• The Superior Person's Books of Words (Boxed Set) Peter Bowler David R Godine, 2001 - 128 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

Not a dictionary but lots of fun!

This box set includes the first, second and third books of words for the Superior Person. Each book contains a collection of unusual words arranged alphabetically with definitions and example sentences, many of which are humorous and a bit tongue-in-cheek. I love these books because they're easy to read in little snippets but entertaining enough to keep you occupied for longer periods of time.

Some of the words, especially in the first and second books, are not quite as rare and unusual as they might have been when the books were first written, and thus may not be quite as useful for impressing people and/or surreptitiously insulting them. The books also do not include pronunciation guides or etymologies; you'll have to go to a real dictionary for that. However, as an entertaining read for those who want to expand their vocabularies with some weird and wondrous words (or for those who have a lexicographer's sense of humor and are looking for a laugh), this box set is a wonderful gift.

for more information click here

The perfect gift for knowledgable friends

Awesome book! Brilliantly and entertainingly written and full of words that you just HAVE to use on a sick leave form...The abecedarian insult will provide hours of entertainment (well, maybe not hours ;) )

The perfect gift for someone with a reputation as the Superior Person!

(I should note: All the books are great, although they're also just "more of the same" - which is great, because the same is brilliant, but you might consider, if you're on a budget, whether you need the whole set; one book could have the same impact as a gift. Then again, once you've bought one, you'll almost certainly go back for more!)

for more information click here

Not too seriously

This is a great book for lover's of vocabulary. As you can infer from the title, it doesn't take itself too seriously, and pokes fun at itself. It is a virtual treasure trove of wonderful nuanced words with clearly defined meanings, explained in a non-traditional, fun, and interesting way. Recommended.

This special collection gathers into one affordable, attractive package all three of the invaluable volumes that comprise Mr. Bowler's timeless trilogy. The author's purpose in compiling these small, elegant, and edifying works is to give readers "a more finely tuned engine of the language they speak, so they may more readily assert their linguistic superiority over their fellow travelers at the traffic stops of life."

The Superior Person's Books of Words offers a panoply of 1,800 arcane but totally plausible words that neither you nor your loved ones has ever heard, plus textual advice on how to use them to confound your friends, irritate your enemies, and impress your superiors. There's yet more: anecdotes of eccentric scholars, the unbelievable and irrevocable mistakes of the rich and famous, examples of idiotic concepts, and further oddities and curiosities of the so-called intellectual life.

From The Superior Person's Book of Words:

Thelyphthoric: n. That which corrupts women. The author's sources do not, unfortunately, identify the object so described; if any reader has one, perhaps he would be kind enough to send it to the author, enclosed in a plain brown wrapper.

From The Superior Person's Second Book of Weird and Wondrous Words:

Catachresis: n. Misapplication of a word. In using the lore and learning contained in this book, you will undoubtedly be found guilty of this. In your defense, you can at least say (a) that you are aware of your lapse, and (b) that you know what it is called.

From The Superior Person's Third Book of Well-Bred Words:

Ustion: n. The act of setting fire to something, or the state of being set fire to. From the Latin ustus, past participle of urere, to burn. Pronounced "usch'n." Always to be preferred to its longer synonym, combustion.

for more information click here