Our language is filled with animal expressions, many of them so familiar that we rarely stop to wonder where they came from or when they first appeared. Cool Cats, Top Dogs, and Other Beastly Expressions tells the stories of more than one thousand beastly words and phrases in fascinating and highly informative essays that you will turn to again and again. So whether you're "crowing over your accomplishments" or "going to the dogs", feeling "happy as a clam" or "madder than a wet hen", you're sure to enjoy this entertaining look at the animal expressions that color and enliven our everyday language.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Jiminy cricket! Bookworms of all stripes will have a whale of a time wolfing down these short essays examining 1,200 animal-related expressions. Christine Ammer must have worked like a busy little bee hunting down derivations; while some of her toil resulted in wild goose chases ("why a mixed drink [cocktail] should resemble a rooster's hind feathers is anyone's guess"), any linguistic night owl is sure to take to the lion's share of this book like a duck to water. It's more fun than a barrel of monkeys. And Cathy Bobak's illustrations are just the cat's meow. --Jane Steinberg
From School Library Journal
YA-This book delves into the meanings and origins of some 1200 English expressions referring to animals. Most readers should find it impossible to resist a good browse through its nine sections covering words, phrases, and folklore related to cats, dogs, barnyard fowl, farm animals, wild animals, birds, reptiles, insects, and water creatures. The literate and lively text both informs and entertains as it gives sources and offers examples of many common expressions that are widely used but, too often, are no longer thoroughly understood. Whether the origins of the terms are found in other languages, in memorable literary phrases that caught on, in old beliefs about the nature of animals themselves, from the Bible ("scapegoat"), or from the barnyard ("ruminate"), readers will gain a new appreciation for the richness and playfulness of the English language. Those needing to ferret out the meaning of a particular expression can look it up in the index. Hot dog!-Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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More About the Author
Christine Ammer is a lifelong student of language. She is the author of several dozen popular reference books, on subjects ranging from classical music to women's health. In recent decades she has concentrated on language, especially colloquial expressions. She lives and looks into words in Lexington, Massachusetts.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
More than just a lot of words...,
By A Customer
This review is from: Cool Cats and Top Dogs (Paperback)
It's hard not to be dazzled by this remarkable compendium of some 1200 everyday expressions that refer to our animal friends. Ammer offers much more than a superficial alphabetical listing of words and phrases, although the complete index makes it easy to use this delightful and informative volume for reference as well as for casual browsing; rather, she presents the reader with a user-friendly collection of topical essays that explore the origins, history, and usage of each of the terms she considers. Never dry or pedantic, the book delves with surprising depth into the etymology and meaning of fauna-related words and the expressions that have grown up around them. For a book aimed at the general public, the level of scholarship is remarkably high. This is an extraordinary book that teaches while it entertains.
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