Short description
The surprise bestseller - now a Book of the Week on Radio 4. What is the actual connection between disgruntled and gruntled? What links church organs to organised crime, California to the Caliphate, or brackets to codpieces?
Long description
The Etymologicon springs from Mark Forsyth's Inky Fool blog on the strange connections between words. It's an occasionally ribald, frequently witty and unerringly erudite guided tour of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language, taking in monks and monkeys, film buffs and buffaloes, and explaining precisely what the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.
Review
The surprise Christmas bestseller, now a BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK, read by Hugh Dennis. 'This year's must-have stocking filler - the angel on the top of the tree, the satsuma in the sock, the threepenny bit in the plum pudding, the essential addition to the library in the smallest room is Mark Forsyth's The Etymologicon.' Ian Sansom, Guardian 'I'm hooked on Forsyth's book - Crikey, but this is addictive' Mathew Parris, The Times 'The Etymologicon contains fascinating facts' Daily Mail 'Kudos should go to Mark Forsyth, author of The Etymologicon - Clearly a man who knows his onions, Mr Forsyth must have worked 19 to the dozen, spotting red herrings and unravelling inkhorn terms, to bestow this boon - a work of the first water, to coin a phrase. Daily Telegraph, October 23 'From Nazis and film buffs to heckling and humble pie, the obscure origins of commonly-used words and phrases are explained.' Daily Telegraph 'One of the books of the year. It is too enjoyable for words,' Henry Coningsby, Bookseller, Waterstones Watford
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