Rating: 
Summary: Handy against Annoying People Who Need to be Silenced
Review: A great brain exercise heavy on humor. I've actually used some of the words in here. I told someone I was kopophobic (fear of exhaustion) and she never bothered me again. ; )
Rating: 
Summary: Richly Lexiphanic
Review: An admitted opsimath, I waiver whether to label dismiss this book as nugatory and jejune or to celebrate it as a heuristic pleasure. Frankly, the book gives me a headache, not because of the content---though it does have the undeniable smirk of one engaged in jactation---but because of its typography. Each entry is set in justified, centered type, a design that causes the words to vellicate the longer one scans the myriad entries. Though the ratio of type size to line length falls short of that of unreadable, sesquipedalian manuals, one's eyes soon tire from the effort. This lexiphanic book is best nibbled like a rich chocolate cake: too much at once proves overwhelming. Instead, try absorbing a word or two as part of a regimen to build vocabulary. Keep your dictionary nearby for pronunciations (a quisquous omission). A bevy of oddball illustrations are amusing, conjuring up some of Thurber's more amiable (and less misogynistic) sketches and providing some relief from the rows of justified, centered type. All in all, this tome is entertaining for the Scrabble factor---you really could make use of "ataxy" should you have an "x"---and can be fun for insulting dull-witted athletes. But mostly it just looks good nestled among the reference books on my desk.
Rating: 
Summary: Delicious!
Review: I cannot believe that the publisher of this charming, funny book doesn't have it on the market for a PERFECT Christmas gift! If you can find it, you will treasure it., I promise you!
Rating:
Summary: You, too can learn charientisms in your spare time!
Review: I could feast all day on a book of fine words. To me, words have colors, flavors and textures. They roll around the tongue like savory morsels, each distinct. There is an art to combining them, much as there is an art to marrying flavors in haute cuisine. Sometimes a chef is adamant about a certain spice or food element for his special dish, as only that one will do to complete a complex palate. In the same way, I will search carefully for just the right word to complete my thoughts. It is a labor of love. The Superior Person's Book of Words is just the thing if your dictionary proves uninspiring. Not only will you find just what you are looking for, but the entertaining and wry wit employed in the definitions will sally the keen reader upon new directions in sassy verbal repartee. Many of the listings are invaluable as veiled insults, and the author frequently highlights these with sample usage sentences. My only comment on that is, living with Peter Bowler must be like living with Oscar Wilde. There are *some* pedestrian listings thrown in, presumably as padding. Or maybe they are intended as mollifiers for the "inferior" readers? In any case, words such as "heterosexual", "pastime" and "impalement" hardly count as tidbits for the esoteric lexicographer in my opinion. Thankfully, they are relatively few. The best part of this book though is the way the author words the definitions. Some examples:
Papuliferous. Pimply. Typical condition of a groak.
Groak. One who stands around while others eat, in the hope that he will be invited to join in. A good name for a female relative's boyfriend.
Nugatory. Of no value, trifling, insubstantial, pointless. Unfavorable criticism of the present book could properly be so characterized. Now how could you not adore a "dictionary" like this?
-Andrea, aka Merribelle
Rating:
Summary: You, too can learn charientisms in your spare time!
Review: I could feast all day on a book of fine words. To me, words have colors, flavors and textures. They roll around the tongue like savory morsels, each distinct. There is an art to combining them, much as there is an art to marrying flavors in haute cuisine. Sometimes a chef is adamant about a certain spice or food element for his special dish, as only that one will do to complete a complex palate. In the same way, I will search carefully for just the right word to complete my thoughts. It is a labor of love. The Superior Person's Book of Words is just the thing if your dictionary proves uninspiring. Not only will you find just what you are looking for, but the entertaining and wry wit employed in the definitions will sally the keen reader upon new directions in sassy verbal repartee. Many of the listings are invaluable as veiled insults, and the author frequently highlights these with sample usage sentences. My only comment on that is, living with Peter Bowler must be like living with Oscar Wilde. There are *some* pedestrian listings thrown in, presumably as padding. Or maybe they are intended as mollifiers for the "inferior" readers? In any case, words such as "heterosexual", "pastime" and "impalement" hardly count as tidbits for the esoteric lexicographer in my opinion. Thankfully, they are relatively few. The best part of this book though is the way the author words the definitions. Some examples:
Papuliferous. Pimply. Typical condition of a groak.
Groak. One who stands around while others eat, in the hope that he will be invited to join in. A good name for a female relative's boyfriend.
Nugatory. Of no value, trifling, insubstantial, pointless. Unfavorable criticism of the present book could properly be so characterized. Now how could you not adore a "dictionary" like this?
-Andrea, aka Merribelle
Rating:
Summary: Very good book by Aussie author
Review: I have enjoyed and used this book for many years. It is a marvellous source of strange, bizarre, obsolete and very useful words. The word 'facinorous' is probably one of the most useful - especially for describing modern right wing politicians and CEOs.
This book is not jejune in any way. Peter Bowler is one Australia's finest sons!
Rating:
Summary: A sine qua non for the logophile
Review: I have the 11th printing (1991) edition. There are many words to learn and be amused. The first word is "abecedarian." The last word is "zzxjoanw." He recomends this word for Scrabble. Another word, found in the book, that he recommends for parlor word games is "aeaeae." Looks weird, doesn't it? He claims that this is the only all-vowel six-letter word known to him. Until I read the book, I didn't know of it either. The author is British and uses examples familiar to Brits. It would have been nice to include the pronounciation of every word. I did find one typo. But, of course, I cannot find it now.
Rating:
Summary: The Superior Person's Book of Words
Review: I just found this book at Restoration Hardware and it looks delightful. It will be a Christmas gift for a very superior person! 12/99
Rating:
Summary: A great book for lovers' of words
Review: I was lucky enough to find this book at a local used book store. I have always loved words, but I didn't know that books like this had been compiled for people like me. In introduction of this book, Peter Bowler states that words are weapons, which is exactly what you need to have in mind when attempting to use them. Although this world is full of a plethora of ignorant people, readers of this book must beware of using certain words that they think people won't recognize. For instance, beware of telling a teacher, boss, or client that he or she is acerebral. That person may have an easy time figuring out that this means that you are saying that the person to whom you are speaking doesn't have a brain. In other words, use your words wisely, and never assume that person who is taking your verbal abuse isn't reading the same book that you may have spent hours memorizing. I am having a great time with this book. I'm just not able to give this book the highest rating. It would have been nice if Bowler had put a pronunciation guide to the words that are in this book. For some of the entries, it is easier to spell the words than it is to say them. Although it is no fault of the author, it is too bad that this book is no longer being published. This is the perfect kind of book to find at a used book store, but it would be nice to give this book as a gift (I won't give away my only copy). If you are lucky enough to find this book, don't miss your chance to purchase this jewel of a book.
Rating:
Summary: A great book for lovers' of words
Review: I was lucky enough to find this book at a local used book store. I have always loved words, but I didn't know that books like this had been compiled for people like me. In introduction of this book, Peter Bowler states that words are weapons, which is exactly what you need to have in mind when attempting to use them. Although this world is full of a plethora of ignorant people, readers of this book must beware of using certain words that they think people won't recognize. For instance, beware of telling a teacher, boss, or client that he or she is acerebral. That person may have an easy time figuring out that this means that you are saying that the person to whom you are speaking doesn't have a brain. In other words, use your words wisely, and never assume that person who is taking your verbal abuse isn't reading the same book that you may have spent hours memorizing. I am having a great time with this book. I'm just not able to give this book the highest rating. It would have been nice if Bowler had put a pronunciation guide to the words that are in this book. For some of the entries, it is easier to spell the words than it is to say them. Although it is no fault of the author, it is too bad that this book is no longer being published. This is the perfect kind of book to find at a used book store, but it would be nice to give this book as a gift (I won't give away my only copy). If you are lucky enough to find this book, don't miss your chance to purchase this jewel of a book.
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