So many books, so little time

Posted by ESC on September 05, 2002

In Reply to: Recently Published Source Suggestions? posted by With Camel on September 05, 2002

:
: Autumn is almost upon us and because I'm due to be very busy around the holidays, my thoughts have turned to Xmas lists and such.

: Do any of you know of any recently published material on phrases, interesting words that are worth investing in? Or if there's nothing recent, any good all round reference books? Thanks to Amazon it doesn't matter whether it's published here or in the UK.

: Thanks,

: Camel

I've got a million of 'em.

A Hog on Ice (1948, Harper & Row) by Charles Earle Funk. This is one in a series of four books (two mostly sayings and two words/phrases) by Mr. Funk. All four are now available in one volume -- 2107 Curious Word Origins, Sayings & Expressions from White Elephants to Song Dance, $16.99.
.
Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins by William and Mary Morris (HarperCollins, New York, 1977, 1988). $26.60. Words and phrases.

Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings by Gregory Y. Titelman (Random House, New York, 1996). Now available in paperback for $13.96. Sayings.

Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins by Robert Hendrickson (Fact on File, New York, 1997) Now available in paperback for $19.96. Words and phrases.

Listening to America: An Illustrated History of Words and Phrases from Our Lively and Splendid Past by Stuart Berg Flexner (Simon and Schuster, New York, 1982). I picked this one up at a remainder store. I Hear America Talking: An Illustrated History of American Words and Phrases by Stuart Berg Flexner (Von Nostrand Reinhold Co., New York, 1976). I got this one second-hand online. These books are great. They have a little bit of everything.

Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Volume 1, A-G by J.E. Lighter, Random House, New York, 1994. And, of course H-O. $45 per. Although I found Vol. 1 for $10 at the aforementioned remainder store, I paid full price for the second. These volumes cover the waterfront -- phrases and words. UPDATE: I think this series stops at the letter O. There was some sort of disagreement.

The Dictionary of Cliches by James Rogers (Ballantine Books, New York, 1985). $5.99 paperback. A good little book.

• So many books, so little time joel 09/05/02
  • Many, many thanks! Word Camel 09/06/02
    • Books ESC 09/06/02
      • You think that's bad... Word Camel 09/06/02
        • "Skip"? Bruce Kahl 09/06/02
          • Confused re skips and dumpsters. TheFallen 09/06/02
            • Confused re skips and dumpsters. Bruce Kahl 09/06/02
              • Dumpsters, skips and rubbish bins Word Camel 09/06/02
                • Dumpsters, skips and rubbish bins TheFallen 09/06/02
                  • Wheel those bins around Gary 09/07/02