This the last of the unusual little dictionaries that I shall review for a while (I promise you!)
Tomorrow, back to the words.
But today this delightful little book called Esar’s Comic Dictionary.
It was written by American joke writer Evan Esar.
The edition I have in front of me was published in 1960—so this another you may have to go ABE books (or another second-hand bookselling site) to find.
(When I checked I found lots of copies from $3:17 to over $20 to choose from.)
There have been many comic dictionaries over the years—the most famous is probably The Devil’s Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce.
(As an example, Bierce defines a ‘canon’ as ‘a weapon used to adjust national borders.’)
So how good are Evan Esar’s comic definitions in this little book?
My own view is that they vary in quality—some are too strained to be clever or funny, but others are witty.
And I use that word deliberately—because ‘wit’ is something a bit cleverer, or more insightful, that a simple joke.
None are hootingly laugh-out-loud funny, but, as I say there is the spice of gentle wit in many of them.
I’ll share a few with you, and you can make up your own mind.
‘Golf’ is ‘billiards gone to grass’; ‘ignorance’ means ‘when someone finds out you don’t know something’; a ‘tax return’ is defined as ‘imaginative fiction’; ‘middle age’ is ‘ten years older than you are now’; a ‘moustache’ is ‘an eyebrow that slipped’; a ‘politician’ is ‘a person who is sworn into office, and afterwards sworn at loudly’; a ‘pessimist’ ‘someone who looks at a doughnut and sees a hole’; ‘justice’ means ‘when the ruling is in our favour’; a ‘teenager’ is ‘someone who stand half way between and adult and the TV screen’; ‘friends’ are ‘God’s apology for relatives’; ‘indigestion’ is ‘what happens when you’re forced to eat your own words.’
You see what I mean about wit being something a bit more subtle than a mere joke?
At any rate, if this is your sort of thing it’s another good read in bed (or in the bath or on the beach) book.
And that’s enough of dictionaries for the time being—tomorrow back to words.
Tonight, I will be a panellist on 'The Sunday Showdown' on Sky News (8pm AEDT)
TO SIGN UP FOR THE FREE DAILY NEWSLETTER SCROLL FURTHER DOWN THIS PAGE >>>>>>
BOOKS:
* My latest book is Sherlock Holmes: 5-Minute Mysteries -- containing 50 new stories I have written about the great detective. You can find it on Amazon. Just go to Amazon and type in Sherlock Holmes: 5-Minute Mysteries in the search panel. Or use this link: h Amazon.com.au : Sherlock Holmes 5-Minute Mysteries Kel Richards
* My book "Defending the Gospel" is now in a second, fully revised, edition. You can find it here: Defending the Gospel – matthiasmedia.com.au
* If you're looking for my recent book "Flash Jim" you'll find it here -- Flash Jim, The astonis
hing story of the convict fraudster who wrote Australia's first dictionary by Kel Richards | 9781460759769 | Booktopia
* You can find all Kel's books currently in print here -- Booktopia Search Results for 'kel richards'. We sell books, hardback, paperback, audio, CDs.
* And also here -- Amazon.com.au : Kel Richards
* And you'll find more here -- Search: 4 results found for "Kel Richards" – matthiasmedia.com.au
* Many of Kel's out of print books can be found at ABE Books -- Kel Richards - AbeBooks explaining words explain the term
BY THE WAY...
If you'd like to see my A-Z list of Aussie slang, you'll find it here in the Australian Geographic website -- A-Z list of Aussie slang. Here’s the link: The A-Z of Aussie slang - Australian Geographic
The liveliest part of this website is usually the Q and A page -- be sure to check it out from time to time.
