The Secret Lives of Words

Superb detective work ferreting out the stories behing the words. The book is not at all self-indulgent. Instead, West draws the reader into his workshop; by doing so, he respects the reader's intelligence.

On the whole this is a fascinating book. But sometimes West's writing is so solipsistic as to be almost indecipherable; this comes from his decision to include his own personal experiences with various of the words without giving us enough context. The best reader for this book would be one who has lived in both Great Britain and in the U.S., because many of the discussions turn on idiomatic usages from one or the other of these countries, leaving readers from the other country in the dark. Still, the scholarship is impeccable, and the amount of delightfully arcane information is valuable.

What a treat! A great bedside book to dip into with relish. I love the wit and stylishness of West's writing, as well as the fascinating stories behind the words.

I found this a fabulous bedside book, full of West's rich language and wit, and packed with fascinating stories about the words we use everyday without knowing what they really mean. (Some of them I'll never use again without laughing.) What fun!

Paul West is a great writer, whose language is always a pleasure. Reading in this treasure trove of word histories is like curling up with a wonderful box of chocolates. Only it isn't fattening. Just plain pleasure from beginning to end.