The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of The Oxford English Dictionary

by Simon Winchester | History |
ISBN: 006099486x Global Overview for this book
Registered by grubsneerg of Greensburg, Pennsylvania USA on 1/24/2010
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1 journaler for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by grubsneerg from Greensburg, Pennsylvania USA on Sunday, January 24, 2010
Picked this up in September 2009 at the YWCA Used Book Sale at Westmoreland Mall in Greensburg, Pa.

Journal Entry 2 by grubsneerg at Greensburg, Pennsylvania USA on Monday, December 17, 2012
An audio version of this book came into my hands, so I read some of this copy and listened to some of the audio until I finished the whole book. There is an interview with the author at the end of the audio book and he says he wanted to tell the extraordinary story of the monumental task of creating the Oxford English Dictionary, but felt he had to glam it up with the equally extraordinary story of one of its contributors, the madman of the title, to make it more accessible to readers. While both stories were fascinating, they did feel like separate stories until about 2/3 of the way into the book, when I thought we were *finally* getting somewhere. I'm glad I read it, but I'm not sure I would recommend it as one of the best books of my reading year.

Published in 1998, the book has an ad at the back for readers to contribute to the third edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, to continue the same kind of work Dr. Minor did for the first edition. The editor predicted 2010 for the release of the third edition; as of today, the third edition is still being worked on.

Released 10 yrs ago (5/11/2013 UTC) at Little Free Library - Forbes Ave (5617) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA

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Left in the Little Free Library on the sidewalk around 6 p.m.

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