The Highly Selective Thesaurus for the Extraordinarily Literate

May 15, 1994
Ehrlich, coeditor of the Oxford American Dictionary, here indulges his obvious love of uncommon words with a short list of terms paired with an idiosyncratic selection of synonyms. Containing fewer than 8000 entries and illustrated with amusing line drawings, it is a fun book to browse. A majority of the entries give only a single synonym, which could be found in a standard paperback thesaurus. While it is intriguing to scan the bizarre and unfamiliar synonyms chosen, the size and selectivity of this work limit its usefulness. Browsers and word collectors will have fun with this little book, but writers and speakers searching for the right word will be better served by a more comprehensive and less quirky thesaurus.-Paul D'Alessandro, Portland P.L., Me.