Books by Simon Winchester
Simon Winchester is a bestselling author, broadcaster and traveller. He is British born and now a US citizen living in Massachusetts and New York City. Winchester’s many books include The Professor and the Madman, The Man Who Loved China and The Map that Changed the World. He was made Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2006.
“The quotations for the dictionary were sent in by members of the public. W.C. Minor was a member of the public, but he just happened to be a murderer who was banged up in Broadmoor. Dr Minor was clearly insane, and one part of his mind was unhinged. He was convinced that he was being spirited off to Constantinople every night. But another part of his mind was perfectly capable of reading books and writing out quotations for the dictionary in a useful, intellectual way, and he did that for many years. Because of the obsessive quality of Dr Minor’s work, the quotations he supplied were really useful, and it makes a great story.” Read more...
The best books on The Oxford English Dictionary
Peter Gilliver, Literary Scholar
“In 1906, one of the largest earthquakes in American history almost entirely destroyed the American West’s great city of San Francisco. Simon Winchester focuses on the response to the earthquake, which was one of the first to be documented by the media. The earthquake caused a fire that lasted for three days and was far more destructive than the quake itself. Insurance companies refused to pay out in the majority of cases because few people at that time had cover specifically for earthquakes.” Read more...
The best books on Natural Disasters
Khurshid Alam, Environmentalist
Interviews with Simon Winchester
The Best American Stories, recommended by Simon Winchester
Modern America is a story of expanding frontiers, says bestselling author Simon Winchester. He tells us about five novels that shed light on the social history of his adopted homeland, from the late 19th century to the Great Depression.
The best books on Volcanoes, recommended by Simon Winchester
The respected author and veteran journalist gives illuminating interview on volcanic eruptions. Discusses wonderful literary works from authors including Jules Vernes, Edward Lytton and Paddy Leigh Fermor
Interviews where books by Simon Winchester were recommended
The best books on Natural Disasters, recommended by Khurshid Alam
Disaster reconstruction and climate change expert, Khurshid Alam, talks through five illuminating books on natural disasters and outlines some of the key political issues relating to disaster management.
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1
History in English Words
by Owen Barfield -
2
The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language
by Mark Forsyth -
3
Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
by Oxford University Press -
4
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
by Simon Winchester -
5
The F-Word
by Jesse Sheidlower -
6
Slang To-day and Yesterday
by Eric Partridge
The Best Books on Etymology
The Best Books on Etymology
Are you an autodidactic maven of sesquipedalian verbosity? Do you venerate periphrasis, or simply revel in linguistic disquisition? If so, you might enjoy our selection of books on etymology, as recommended over the years by our expert interviewees.
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1
Caught in the Web of Words: James Murray and the Oxford English Dictionary
by K. M. Elisabeth Murray -
2
The Collected Papers of Henry Bradley
by Robert Bridges -
3
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
by Simon Winchester -
4
The Study of Language in England, 1780-1860
by Hans Aarsleff -
5
The Scholar's Daughter
by Beatrice Harraden
The best books on The Oxford English Dictionary, recommended by Peter Gilliver
The best books on The Oxford English Dictionary, recommended by Peter Gilliver
It’s a dictionary that seeks to document any word that exists—or ever existed—in the English language and track its evolution over time. Lexicographer Peter Gilliver chooses books to help understand the enormous undertaking that is the Oxford English Dictionary.
