Crazy English
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In what other language, asks Lederer, do people drive on a parkway and park in a driveway, and your nose can run and your feet can smell? In CRAZY ENGLISH, Lederer frolics through the logic-boggling byways of our language, discovering the names for phobias you didn't know you could have, the longest words in our dictionaries, and the shortest sentence containing every letter in the alphabet. You'll take a bird's-eye view of our beastly language, feast on a banquet of mushrooming food metaphors, and meet the self-reflecting Doctor Rotcod, destined to speak only in palindromes.
Liked Crazy English? Here’s where I’d start.
These suit anyone who liked Crazy English. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.
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English as a Second F*cking Language: How to Swear Effectively, Explained in Detail With Numerous Examples Taken from Everyday Life Shares language, nonfiction, humor -
Latin for All Occasions: From Cocktail-Party Banter to Climbing the Corporate Ladder to Online Dating-- Everything You'll Ever Need to Say in Perfect Latin Shares language, humor, nonfiction -
I Never Metaphor I Didn't Like: A Comprehensive Compilation of History's Greatest Analogies, Metaphors, and Similes Shares language, nonfiction, writing -
Origins of the Specious: Myths and Misconceptions of the English Language Shares language, nonfiction, linguistics
“People who read Crazy English tend to reach for these next.”
“If you want more of the same (education about writers), start with these.”
“If it was the language that hooked you, try one of these.”
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They Have a Word for It: A Lighthearted Lexicon of Untranslatable Words & Phrases
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The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll through the Hidden Connections of the English Language
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The Meaning of Tingo and Other Extraordinary Words from around the World
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Why You Say It : The Fascinating Stories Behind Over 600 Everyday Words and Phrases
