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Foyle's Philavery: A Treasury of Unusual Words (Hardcover)

by Christopher Foyle (Author)

4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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She Literally Exploded: The "Daily Telegraph" Infuriating Phrasebook: The "Daily Telegraph" Infuriating Phrasebook by Christopher Howse
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Product details

Hardcover: 233 pages
Publisher: Chambers Harrap; Reprint edition (27 Jul 2007)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0550103295
ISBN-13: 978-0550103291
Product Dimensions: 20.6 x 13.7 x 2.5 cm

Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 19,264 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories:
#4 in Books > Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauri > Slang & Idioms
#8 in Books > Reference > Language > Slang & Jargon

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www.foyles.co.uk - The ideal gift for everyone who loves weird and wonderful words.

Product Description

Review

I happen to be one of those people who love these kinds of books, though unfortunately they frequently get lost in the mélange of frippery that is located around the checkout counter at better bookstores. Anyway, Foyle, who happens to own such a bookstore in London, has collected a fair-sized book’s worth of odd and distinctive words, his favourite of which is “kakistocracy, a system of government where the rulers are the least competent, least qualified or most unprincipled citizens”—a word we ought to use more frequently. (The Morning News Book Digest )

I have found many surprises in the Philavery – I didn't know that alopecia literally means fox mange!

(Roddy Lumsden's Blog, www.booksfromscotland.com )

Product Description

The word philavery was invented to describe this book: a collection of words chosen simply on the grounds of their aesthetic appeal. Some of these words appeal because of their aptness, some for their obscurity, some for their euphony, and some for their quirkiness. As a collection, they represent the fruits of a lifetime of reading and will delight all word lovers.

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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

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	93% buy the item featured on this page: Foyle's Philavery: A Treasury of Unusual Words 4.2 out of 5 stars (4) �5.96
	3% buy Fopdoodle and Salmagundi: Words and Meanings from Dr Samuel Johnson's Dictionary That Time Forgot: Words and Meanings from Samuel Johnson's Dictionary That Time Forgot �7.49
	2% buy Foyle's Further Philavery 5.0 out of 5 stars (1) �5.99
	2% buy Contraptions 5.0 out of 5 stars (2) �14.38

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Customer Reviews

4 Reviews

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delight, 6 Nov 2007

By	Ralph Blumenau (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

This is great fun for those who are interested in unusual words, even though there is, I think, a slight padding out. By my reckoning at least, some ten words out of the 105 listed here beginning with the letter A are not really all that unusual. But this must be a somewhat subjective judgment. Some 73 of the words under A I had never come across, and that's a pretty good score for this beautifully produced book. Would make a lovely present for a philaveryphile!

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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An idiosyncratic collection of (fairly) uncommon and pleasing words, 17 Mar 2008

By	Ms. Katie J. Down "She is too fond of books, ... (East Anglia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

When I saw this advertised, I felt slightly ashamed that I had no idea what a `philavery' was.... It turns out I needn't have worried: the word was invented specifically to describe this book: "Philavery /fil-a-vuh-ri/ n. an idiosyncratic collection of uncommon and pleasing words."

The book is the result of years of word collecting by the author, Christopher Foyle, chairman of the famous Foyles bookshop in London. The `uncommoness' of the words included in the volume is defined by Foyle; as such many words in the philavery are familiar to me. Indeed, he states in the introduction that the US commander of the first Gulf War described information with little value as "bovine scatology". The author admits he had to refer to a dictionary to discover the meaning of scatology, which surprised me as I would not personally consider it an unusual word. The same goes for fabiform, exsanguinate, factitious, chino and countless more. Some words, such as `halcyon', were included not because they are particularly unfamiliar, but because of their fascinating etymologies.

In all, this would make a great gift with its attractive design and quality of production. And whilst the criteria for inclusion in the philavery seems somewhat spurious, and certainly subjective, this is a 230-page book full of obscure, quirky, fun, poignant words, so even if you know some of them already, there is still plenty to delight and inform word lovers.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Foyles Philavery, 15 April 2009

By	Ms. M. R. Parrott - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a really good book, full of obscure and fascinating words. Its also fun and a useful tool in getting reluctant readers to enjoy the power of words, it has been an excellent incentive in my family just by inserting one of the words in a text message knowing that the younger elements of the family will go and look it up in the Foyles. Wouldn't be without it now.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Set now complete!
I was given "Foyle's further Philavery" and "My Philavery" for my recent birthday, so I wanted this volume to complete the set. Read more

Published 11 days ago by KN Bladon

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