Love English language?
Do you love the English language, love finding the derivation of words?
Then buy David Crystal’s Words in Time and Place, published by Oxford University Press.
Historical Thesaurus
It is a great introduction to the Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, a major work of scholarship which presents a timeline for thousands of words, showing how their meanings have changed over centuries and how each period of history.
Crystal’s Book
Crystal’s book, like the Thesaurus itself divides words into sets or groups. A dictionary does not do this. He has chosen groups which will entertain general readers and sharpen the appetite of serious wordsmiths. So words for dying, fools, prostitutes, pop music and hotels are chosen, among others.
The sources of the main Thesaurus is extraordinarily rich. There are over 1100 words for dying!
Value to Publishers and Copy-editors
Imagine you are a historical novelist and you need the right word to put in period context. Did people “pass on”, “pass over”, “pass”, “meet their Maker”, “expire”, or simply “die” in 1850 or 1700, for example?
The Thesaurus will give you rich fodder. Editors and copy-editors will find it a valuable reference tool if they deal with historical matter; publishers should have the two-volume work on their shelves or supply their staff with the online edition.
Historical accuracy is often overlooked in the editorial process and nothing devalues a book more than inaccuracy (or poor proofreading, of course).
Little Errors Kill a Book
A book can be spoiled by typos or small errors. And words or phrases which jar because they are out of period have the same effect.
There is never an excuse for a book riddled with errors. We are all human and the odd slip gets through in any book. But competent, well-trained copy-editors and proofreaders should be employed to make a book as near perfect as possible
What’s the point of an excellent piece of work being ruined by carelessness? Books like David Crystal’s and the main Thesaurus make us aware of the minefield that awaits anyone who writes historical fiction or non-fiction.
David Crystal is one of the leading authorities on the English language; he has written many highly-respected books and been a regular broadcaster as well as a leading academic. Please have a browse in the Chapterhouse bookshop for more titles by Crystal.