The Dictionary People

**LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2024**<BR><BR>'Enthralling and exuberant ... Here is a wonder-book for word-lovers' Jeanette Winterson<BR><BR>'A lively, entertaining, and illuminating read. I loved it' Susie Dent<BR><BR>What do three murderers, Karl Marx's daughter and a vegetarian vicar have in common?<BR>They all helped create the Oxford English Dictionary.<BR><BR>The Oxford English Dictionary has long been associated with elite institutions and Victorian men. But the Dictionary didn't just belong to the experts; it relied on contributions from members of the public. By 1928, its 414,825 entries had been crowdsourced from a surprising and diverse group of people, from astronomers to murderers, naturists, pornographers, suffragists and queer couples.<BR><BR>Lexicographer Sarah Ogilvie dives deep into previously untapped archives to tell a people's history of the OED. Here, she reveals, for the first time, the full story of the making of one of the most famous books in the world - and celebrates the extraordinary efforts of the Dictionary People.<BR><BR>** A Financial Times, TLS and Daunt Books Book of the Year 2023 **<BR><BR>'Utterly fascinating, entertaining, astonishing and as clever as a box of monkeys ... I completely love it' Joanna Lumley<BR><BR>'Full marks to Sarah Ogilvie... guaranteed to grab those of us obsessed with books, language and mystery' Financial Times<BR><BR>'[An] astonishing book' Sunday Times<BR><BR>'Touching ... The oddities [of language] enliven the book' Observer *Book of the Day*<BR><BR>'[An] affectionate and accomplished book' TLS<BR><BR>'Engaging' Spectator<BR><BR>'Marvellous, witty and wholly original' Alan Rusbridger<BR><BR>'Glorious and surprising' Richard Ovenden, Bodley's Librarian and author of Burning the Books<BR><BR>'A fascinating and delightful exploration of the Victorian world ... Wonderful' Nicola Shulman, TLS Podcast