A review by halfelfschollar
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I am not unfamiliar with shedding a tear or 2 over a story, but it is rare for me to openly weep at the ending of a book. This is one of those times.
Reading Esme's story, from her youth to her adulthood, allowed an undeniable attachment to her character. Her insatiable curiosity and desire for knowledge are admirable traits that I see reflected in many of the people around me.
When the war started is when I found myself beginning to really feel the emotions become too much. Angus and Bertie, in particular, had me weeping more than once.
Author Pip Williams' questions mentioned in her author's not at the end are things I have often wondered myself. Being a lover of all things storytelling it's hard not to ponder the significance of the words we use and why we use them instead of others. I think it's a concept she explored and navigated beautifully within this book. The words of women being the focus I cannot imagine a better setting than that of England during the development of the first dictionary and the woman's suffrage movement. I also commend the inclusion of the critique that the movement did not encompass all women and that there are more ways to protest and support a movement than we often see in other depictions of women's suffrage.
Reading Esme's story, from her youth to her adulthood, allowed an undeniable attachment to her character. Her insatiable curiosity and desire for knowledge are admirable traits that I see reflected in many of the people around me.
When the war started is when I found myself beginning to really feel the emotions become too much. Angus and Bertie, in particular, had me weeping more than once.
Author Pip Williams' questions mentioned in her author's not at the end are things I have often wondered myself. Being a lover of all things storytelling it's hard not to ponder the significance of the words we use and why we use them instead of others. I think it's a concept she explored and navigated beautifully within this book. The words of women being the focus I cannot imagine a better setting than that of England during the development of the first dictionary and the woman's suffrage movement. I also commend the inclusion of the critique that the movement did not encompass all women and that there are more ways to protest and support a movement than we often see in other depictions of women's suffrage.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, War, Death, Infertility, Pregnancy, Sexism, Classism, Sexual content, and Misogyny