A review by foxreadsbooks
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

This is a difficult one to review. The Dictionary of Lost Words, is, to an extent, as described in the blurb, but much more, a Bildungsroman, following Esme through the development of (and her part in) the Oxford English Dictionary, as well as important historical events, including World War 1. While the central story remains the dictionary, Esme sometimes leaves the scriptorium for short and longer lengths of time, and we follow her as life happens, often tragically. It's the later description that I didn't always understand. It seems that the lasting feeling of this novel is rather melancholy. And perhaps that's life, but did it need to be so relentless in fiction? At the end, I wonder what was the point of it all?



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