Wonderful Words That Tell a Tale: An etymological exploration of over 100 everyday words, by Tom Read Wilson, Ian Morris (illustrator)

 Publication October 1, 2024

Remember how much we enjoyed playing with words in, oh, so many ways as kids? Rolling around multi-syllable, almost musical ones in out mouths, testing their sounds and rhymes, even memorizing how to spell L.O.N.G. words because, well, because we could. Wilson captures a bit of that whimsical childhood past in this book with the help of Morris' fun illustrations. While I'd question aiming the book at children, the fun element should make it work. It's not necessarily a book to read from front to back, either, as one can easily flip around, flip back and forth, or, shh, even skip words that simply don't grab you. 

It's been awhile since I read the prior book but these words seem more unfamiliar than the those initially showcased, but the format is the same. Each letter of the alphabet gets four words. One word is highlighted and showcased in a brief rhyme. Tables are shown that share the words origin and how the term came to be and more. The three words that follow aren't necessarily related but did catch the author's whimsy, Finally, the words are in italics for their first use and their source is in bold, with meanings underlined. Don't worry. It's pretty obvious as you go along. 

Phew, with that bit of explanation done, let's turn to the words. Nope, not going to provide you with a full list... part of the fun is in the discovery .... but will highlight a few that aren't mentioned in the blurb. For instance, the word alphabet itself. It comes from the Greek terms alpha and beta, the first two letters of the Greek alphabet. Like many, I knew the word sandwich got its name from the Earl of Sandwich but do you know his real name? Nope. Not telling, but it's there. There's even an explanation for where the abbreviation Xmas came from. Again, nope. Not telling. I will share that the Old English meaning of the word hiccup comes from one meaning "elf induced". That somehow seems fitting. Oh, and the term barbecue comes from the Caribbean and means, oops, almost gave that one away. Check it out before your next barbecue.

Bottom line, a fun book for all ages that can be revisited repeatedly. Morris' watercolor style illustrations are whimsical in nature but realistic, too, if that makes sense. They add to the fun. Thanks #QuartoPublishingGroup - #words&pictures for allowing me an early peek at this fun collection. The glossary in the beginning was quite helpful, btw.