Review of "Dictionary of Foreign Word and Phrases," by Maxim Newmark

Review of

Dictionary of Foreign Word and Phrases, by Maxim Newmark ISBN 0880299711

Five out of five stars

 This is a simple reference book that is fun to simply open at random and read the entries. Many of them appear in what could be called “regular discourse,” but most are expressive, unusual terms and phrases. The languages of the terms are European, generally Latin and French with other languages such as Italian, Spanish and Russian included.

 One of the best ways that a story can be enlivened for the reader and the author is to include unusual or rarely used terms in the tale. For example, if there is need for a word referring to a fixer of hair, the word “coiffeur” adds a bit of flair to the description. This book will give people a great deal of assistance on both sides of that relationship, for the reader and the writer.