A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
by Simon Winchester
Harper Collins, 1998
Comments: Winchester is an incredibly prolific writer who's enjoyed much popular success -- particularly with this book -- but this was my first experience with his work. He's clearly an adept storyteller, expertly suffusing historical source with a compelling dramatic suspense. Basically the story is about how a retired American military doctor, who was for many years confined to an insane asylum in Great Britain after committing a heinous murder while in a deranged mental state, goes on to be one of the most productive contributors to the first edition of Oxford English Dictionary. The structure of the story is built around the two intersecting lives of the doctor and the dictionary's editor, a relationship that was mostly conducted through personal correspondence, with neither man knowing much about the other until many years into their collaboration. It's truly a remarkable story and Winchester tells it masterfully. So much so that I've already added some of his other books to my reading list.
Copy Notes: Hardback, first edition
