Review by Choice Review
Designed as a thesaurus for writers and speakers, the second edition of this phrase book (1st ed., ed. by E. Sommer and M. Sommer, CH, Nov'88, 26-1305) fulfills its purpose admirably. Some 1,300 thematic categories (a table of which includes see also references and cross-references) make it easy to browse, and a 60-page author index is useful for answering quotation reference questions. This indexing is not lightning fast: looking under an author's name provides a category wherein a quotation may be found; however, since quotations are listed alphabetically by first word, one must search the entire listing. More than 16,000 entries cover obvious and esoteric themes, e.g., "limpness," "jumping," "howls," "forehead," "dryness," "eeriness," "protrusion," "rashes," and "rocking and rolling." A Google search comparison found Louis Adamic's quotation on dryness on only one website--The Free Dictionary (CH, Feb'06, 43-3112), which credits the first edition of the Similes Dictionary. Readers may use the Similes Dictionary to provide examples of similes; to find a specific simile, or one by a particular author; or to while away an enjoyable evening. The low price makes this title "as cheap as pearls are costly" (Robert Browning). It is a worthy addition to reference collections. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. L. K. Miller Western Kentucky University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
If this book could speak, it would be a grand rolling voice, like the sound of an underground train in the distance. This dictionary is chock-full of this and 16,000 other creative entries, and users won't have a problem picking the perfect phrase. The book is compiled from more than 2,000 sources, from television shows to Shakespeare. It is arranged alphabetically by subject and includes a detailed author index. A good tool for writers, students, and those looking for inspiration.--Adams, Jennifer Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Containing a variety of classic and modern similes from literature, news media, performing arts, and electronic media, this work offers 16,000 broadly indexed similes classified by 1,300 categories. Sources range from the Bible, Chaucer, Shakespeare, and Napoleon Bonaparte to Robert Chandler, Margaret Atwood, Woody Allen, Noel Coward, and Tom Brokow. This second edition of a work originally published in 1988 includes editorial clarification when a simile appears vague as well as tips for creating and using the devices in one's speech and writing. The "Table of Thematic Categories" and author index provide additional and valuable access points. While cross-references appear in all three access points, they are inconsistent. For example, "crime" has see-also references to "dishonesty" and "evil," but "evil" refers to "action" and "cruelty." The author index could be stronger as some entries are missing (e.g., Babylonian Talmud and quotations from Bartlett's Dictionary of Americanisms). Although all entries are identified by author (e.g., Anon., Japanese Proverb; "Samuel Johnson, March 21, 1776"), it would be especially helpful if each one received full attribution. Currently, only those from Chandler's works, Shakespeare's plays and the news media are fully identified. VERDICT While this title would be a solid addition to a library's collection, it is not a replacement for Frank Wilstach's Dictionary of Similes for Speakers & Writers or Robert Baldwin and Ruth Paris's Book of Similes. Of interest to puzzle-solvers, authors, and speechwriters.-Laurie Selwyn, -formerly with Grayson Cty. Law Lib., Sherman, TX (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
