Dictionary Reviews

I have read issues of the Folklore journal, and have always been allured by the true origins of folklore, rather than the fanciful relics of ancient practice theories. It's a shame people still believe in this type of theorising whereby one explanation can be stretched to explain everything from corn dollies to the rising price of fish, but hopefully books like this might counterbalance the trend. I find the main culprits are those in the field of withcraft, paganism etc where all too many authors accept & propagate complete rubbish about the past.

This book is an excellent resource of folklore, much of which I have been brought of with or come across. This book has contributed greatly to an understanding of the reasons behind so many things that seem commonplace, such as maypole dancing (which I did as a child at school!), making daisy chains, not stepping on the cracks in pavements etc.

It's one of those books which I tend to flick open, read one entry, refer to another & then find myself wanting to explore the subject further.

One other attraction of this book for me is that it's about my own country. It seems a real shame that so many people in England seem to find other countries so alluring that they completely neglect the vast heritage of their own, turning instead to the East, the Indians etc. This book is a real celebration of our country, and hopefully will bring our customs into the popular consciousness.

However, this book also takes into account the fact that folklore is not dead, it carries on creating itself in the forms of urban legends, rumours etc, and that todays gossip could become tommorows legend.

Don't let the review below mislead you into to thinking that this is a piece of new-age fluff. Though neo-pagans may also get something out of it, "A Dictionary of English Folkore" is a work of serious scholarship and eruditon, compiled by two internationally recognized folklore scholars and published by Oxford University Press. As such, it is best compared to other reference guides published by academic presses (e.g. "The Oxford Dictionary of Saints", "The Concise Dictionary of American History", "The Norton Dictionary of French Literature", etc.), rather than to books on how to perform Wiccan sex magic.

Essentially, this is an alphabetical dictionary of English (not British, just English) folklore. The editors use a fairly broad definition of folklore and the 1000+ entries deal with nursery rhymes, fairy tales, folktales and legends, superstitions, holidays, customs, and even folk medicine and folk music and dancing. Topics discussed include: Mother Goose, Robin Hood, wassailing, the tooth fairy, Michaelmas, splitting wishbones, kissing under the mistletoe, and Morris dancing. The folkloric origins of many colloquialisms and other turns of speech (i.e. why is a ne'er-do-well refered to as "the black sheep of the family") are discussed, and there are even entries for a a few modern urban legends as well.

The entries are arranged alphabetically rather than thematically (it is a 'dictionary' after all) and tend to be fairly brief (a few sentences to one paragaph long). They do, however, have cross-references to related entries and come with citations so that those seeking more detailed information about a particular item can go find a source that treats it at greater length.

This isn't necessarily a book that everyone needs, but it is an *outstanding* reference guide and will be very useful to those interested in English culture, literature, and history. And frankly, even folks who don't really need a reference guide to English folkore will probably still find this a lot of fun to browse though. (The short entries actually make it great for casual 'bathroom reading' as it were). I don't give out five-star reviews lightly, but a well-researched, well-presented reference work like this deserves it.

Hail! This book is very important for those whom hope to understand pagan religion at a folk level....or more specifically pagan religion as it was practiced in England in anceint times(most specifically the Anglo Saxon, Norse, and Frisian settlers). This will help you capture the spirit of how the farmer, cunning folk, trademan and other peasent level folk thought in anceint teutonic society. Too often are people swayed into thinking that anceint teutonic religion was purely a "warrior religion", instead of understanding that it was an all encompassing religion that pervaded all walks of life. This book is read best right next to True Hearth by James Chisolm, Witchdom of the True by Edred Thorsson, Leechcraft by Stephen Pollington,and Wiccan Sex Magic by Inga Steddinger.Living Asatru by Stephen McNallen is also an excellent book as well(by the way, be sure to wassail the apple trees during Yule Tide!) For Frith and Kinfolk, Isenwulf Wodheart

If you want to compete - and win! - at the ATPO Tech Bowl at AAO (and local ophthalmology society Tech Bowl-style quiz competitions) this is among the best references to study, along with Stein/Slat/Stein.

This dictionary is perfect for the person who either can't spell perfectly 100% of the time, or wants to increase his/her eye terminology with more professional vocabulary. A must for all eye-care professionals!

I am a Medical Transcriptionist who obtained an opthalmologist as one of the clients we transcribe for. I had no training in opthalmology, but with the use of this book I was able to transcribe each report as if I were doing it for years. This a great book. I hope they come out with more dictionaries that are geared towards other types of specialities (i.e. orthopedics, radiology, ob/gyn, etc...

THIS BOOK IS A VERY GOOD DESCRIPTION OF,OF THE RELATION OF US WITH GOD. YOU ARE AMAZED OF HOW THE AUTHOR HAS GONE THROUGH THE FEELINGS AND IT MAKES THEM SEEM AS BEING TRUE. ONE CAN FEEL AS LIVING IN THE SITUATION. WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE OTHER BOOK. YOU BETTER EXPECT THAT OTHER BOOK , # 6 TO COME OUT AND THEN START READING THE OTHERS, BECAUSE IF NOT YOU ARE GOING TO REMAIN WITH THE FEELING OF BEING UNCOMPLETED. BUT DON'T LEAVE IT WITHOUT READING IT. YOU WILL LOOSE?!

I have often found need for this book. It gives detailed etymologies of names, of famous persons bearing the name, and cross-references different forms of the name (as nick, male/female, and other languages). A name book done up as a proper reference book. It also has sections on Hindi/Indian and Muslim/Arabic names.

Head and shoulders above all other name books I have seen. Well researched and extremely thorough.

Indeed, this is a good book. But to get even more out of it, read The Illuminati Manifesto.

Having to study about Freemasonry, being interested in all the things it represented, a dictionary was absolutely a good suggestion.
Honestly, I couldn't imagine I would have found so many interesting things in this Dictionary, divided in two parts and full of illustrations.
While working on my book (which only incidentally is about Freemasonry), this Dictionary helped me in more than one occasion.
Very well explained and extremely useful, it is a good companion of another book, Edward Waite's "A New Encyclopaedia of Freemasonry".
If you want to know more, all you have to do is knock on a Temple's door.

Getting accurate, correct, and truthful Masonic information can sometimes feel harder then pulling teeth. Freemasonry is a subject that alot of people don't know about and fewer truly understand, which makes gleaning useful information difficult. Even talking to some Masons might leave you with more questions then answers after your done.

However Roberet MacOy's work in "A Dictionary of Freemasonry" provides light to anyone seeking Masonic history and information. MacOy's work is part history, part encylopedia, and part dictionary. It starts with a brief history of Freemasonry and lists the terminology in two different volumes using an A-Z dictionary format. It explains the people, places, terms, and symbols that you would ever want to know about and much more.

Every lodge should have a few copies of this work on hand and anyone with an interest in Freemasonry must have one on their bookshelf too. If you doing Masonic research, its priceless, but if just want to learn about Masonry, its informative and easy to follow and provides more information then you can well, shake a stick at, a big stick too.

This book is a great reference book to get the basic idea of an important person, place, or philosophy. It really is a book of global culture. It has many important western references as well as non-western or non eurocentric references. I like to just open the book for a few minutes whenever I am sitting near the bookshelf and learn something new. Each entry is about a half a page on average. Some are less some are more. There is really so much to learn about the world that our western education dosn't teach us. For example you can get a consice description of the French Revolution, or learn about Kuukai (774-835), a Japanese religious leader, or read about Macumba, an Afro-Brazilian religion. It's all here.

This is my first time recommending a book and I couldn't have chose a better reference tool! As an American living in Europe, having never been intrigued by history, I often refer to this book during or after discussions as a fact checker. Highly recommended!

I read this book this summer and the insight I gained cannot be paralleled. This book gives detailed accounts of people, places, and events of major influence in our time and in history. No one should be allowed to call himself/herself "educated" until she/he has read this book. What a wonderful resource!

Hypnotism is more than waving a watch in front of someone's face, and saying, "Sleep, sleep, sleep!" THE DICTIONARY OF HYPNOTISM is filled with the little bits and pieces, and great facts, that make up this art. Everything from Mesmer to movies. Anyone even slightly interested in the subject will find this book both useful and fascinating.

Good for any reference library. But it really needed more pictures

Lots of facts about hypnotism lore, history, and technique. Useful to anyone needing the odd fact about things hypnotic.

Over the past year,I've come across a number of terms in international business that I was unfamiliar with. This exhaustive book explains each of them clearly, concisely and in a user-friendly fashion, citing examples. It should be in the library of every business executive who has any interest in doing business with international contacts or who likes to keep up with global business trends in general.

Barron's is outstanding in making quick reference books. Their dictionaries and their business notes are essential for any student or business person trying to gain the "upper-hand".

These days every business is, or should be, an international business. But the terminology is confusing. It is derived from many languages, business cultures and eras. Even seasoned international business professionals need this reference work. This new edition is up-to-the minute capturing new expressions and concepts.

This book helped me survive graduate school - especially during my written preliminary exams. It is a comprehensive source of information, and it happily contained every word I wished to look up. I would not call it simply a 'dictionary', as the explanations are very in-depth and detailed. Seriously, this is one you need in your personal collection.

This book was invaluable to me during my tenure as a graduate student in molecular biology. It is very comprehensive, easy to use and to understand. It is a great asset to anyone studying a biology related field at an undergraduate or graduate level. It is particularly helpful when reading papers from research journals. Worth every penny.

Singleton's Dictonary of Microbiology and Molecular Biology is wonderfully comprehensive, very current and a bargain at $62. This dictionary at 1,000-plus pages is a must-have book.

A wonderful balance of readability and depth, this book is the first book I recommend to those interested in incorporating herbal medicines.

I suspected when I ordered the book that the dictionary format would make the book a useful basic reference, but otherwise rather a dry read. How wrong I was. The ample bold-typed cross-references mean there is an infinite variety of reading paths, allowing for easy digestion of the information in manageable chunks. This is best illustrated with anexample.

Looking up "migraines" to see if I could so something to help my wife, I found just over half a page of information, starting with types of migraine and possible causes. Mills went on to discuss the differences between "hot" migraines and "cold" migraines and how this distinction will affect the choice of treatment. I determined from this information that my wife's migraines are of the "hot" type. Mills states that "bitter" and "relaxant" or "sedative"remedies are most likely to be of benefit. Following the reference to "bitter" remedies, I found more than a page of information including a list of 24 herbs that fit into this category, many of them with their own entries elsewhere in the book...

At first glance, this may seem to be a long-winded way of finding the information you need, but it's actually surprisingly quick. More to the point, by negotiating your own reading path you actually arrive at a deeper understanding than ispossible with better-known texts, where usually a single prescription is given for each named disease and it's usually impossible to judge why the author chose a particular herb in preference to another. Going back to the "bitters" entry, bold-typed terms here include volatile oils, alkaloids, anorexia, dyspepsia, fever management, food allergies, gall-bladder disease, liver disease, hypoglycaemia, diabetes, adaptogenic, peptic ulcers, and tonic. Following any of these links leads in turnto unexpected discoveries.

In my view, this book dispels the notion that the general reader needs lots of pictures and colour to maintain interest. However, those who differ with me on this point may like to buy David Hoffman's "The Complete Illustrated Holistic Herbal", which, in addition to these enhancements and its more traditional organization, includes a section on growing herbs. Veterans of the Dictionary, however, may find Hoffman's book a little less than satisfying as regardsthe depth of the explanations.

Those wanting to take their study to a deeper level may like to get the more expensive and scholarly Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy: Modern Herbal Medicine by Simon Mills and Kerry Bone.

I am so impressed with this book that I really recommend it to anyone interested in herbal medicine. It is very easy to use as it is arranged alphabetically (as the title of dictionary suggests) and it allows you to look up either the common or botanical name of the plant and gives all the essential information regarding the properties, appearance, habitat, actions and usages (including dosage). The book is definitely an asset to any personal reference library.

I purchased this book after borrowing one from the library. It has been the most dependable source of information for my recovery. I have been suffering food and chemical toxicity for twenty years(undiagnosed until one year ago prompted by my own investigations) and although I had already gleaned some ideas for recovery from the internet this book followed all the principles I obtained from the immunological, gatroenterological, neurotoxicological and physiological web sources. I cannot emphasise the value of this tome enough. It is marvellous that information exists other than that available from GP's which I found to be nil or plain verbal abuse. This book is for those who believe in their own life and health and don't just want to entrust these to GP's who basically only offer palliative care or ignorance.

Quotes about the composers, by the composers, about the nusic, about the inspiration for the music, about the instruments, and about performance... this book of quotes provides an alphabetical listing of topics which include composers themselves and many other subjects. William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw, and other famous non-musicians also figure prominently.... its is interesting to read quotes from the composers about a piece I am currnetly playing... gives a new viewpoint, that of the genius who created the music.... and there are a few criticisms too.... a great book for musicians and music-lovers!

This is a wonderful book filled with images of the beat coffeehouse hangouts in Greenwich village circa 50s and 60s. It is great to actually be able to view a photo of a poetry reading as it took place in one of these bohemian haunts. We are lucky that the author had the foresight to take photos in the smoke-filled coffeehouses and beat pads. I have a coffeehouse and the book is a great reference to utilize when trying to recapture the spirit and styling of the 50s coffeehouse.

McDarrah's photograpic work evokes what it must have been like to frequent the bohemian scene of the late '50s and early '60's. Anyone who is greatly interested in the literature of this genre, but too young to have actual remembrances of this era, will find this work fascinating. Many of the photos have never been published before, and thus are a refreshing change from the standard photos of Kerouac, Ginsberg, and crew that have been served up so many times elsewhere. McDarrah, who I believe worked for the Village Voice at that time, has done a fine job in selecting the photos in this collection. My favorites are one of Diane DiPrima, perched on a piano reciting her poetry, and Herbert Huncke visiting Allen Ginsberg and attempting to fix the latter's broken TV. I also enjoyed the many pics of other accomplished, but lesser known figures of the era, and the establishments they frequented, such as the Cedars Bar & Grill