The Describer's Dictionary: A Treasury of Terms and Literary Quotations for Readers& Writers [Hardcover]

David Grambs (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0393033996 | ISBN-13: 978-0393033991 | Publication Date: February 1993 | Edition: 1st

A dictionary of the observable world features definition-first organization; passages from the writings of James, Updike, Chandler, and others; and words concerning shapes, textures, colors, terrain, structures, and more.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Having previously assisted wordsmiths with his Random House Dictionary for Writers and Readers ( LJ 11/1/90), Grambs now focuses his attention on precision of description. His new work boasts more than 5000 entries not found in most thesauruses or dictionaries, the majority of them visually descriptive of the physical world and highly adjectival in form. Using reverse dictionary format, Grambs provides access by definitional phrases within the broad categories of "things," "earth and sky," "animals," and "people." Subdivisions (e.g., "heads," "eyes," "jaws," etc.) simplify the reader's search for the perfect word, but one can still spend ample time thumbing through such delights as the approximately 100 entries under "patterns and edges." Some suggested adjectives are questionable, such as vaccine for cow-like. Most verso pages contain examples of descriptive passages by well-known writers that are almost more helpful than the definitions themselves. Recommended for general collections.
- Cathy Sabol, Northern Virginia Community Coll., Manassas
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 412 pages
• Publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc; 1st edition (February 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393033996
• ISBN-13: 978-0393033991
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #883,192 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Most Valuable Resource for Writers Ever!!!!, March 17, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Panama City, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Describer's Dictionary: A Treasury of Terms and Literary Quotations for Readers& Writers (Hardcover)

Excellent Work by Grambs! If you need the cutting edge of literary description of anything from homes to people in incessant and meticulous detail. In fact, of my expansive and elaborate literary library, it is my favorite! Undeniably the best work for a beginning writer. Undeniably the best resource for writers needing to talk shop with their own souls. Irrepressible, benevolent, indeliable to the articulation of the imagination! Buy it Today!

Cameron Rowe

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrific Dictionary and Great Review of Skilled Writing, March 23, 2002

By 

JD Cetola (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Describer's Dictionary: A Treasury of Terms and Literary Quotations for Readers& Writers (Hardcover)

Gramb's Describer's Dictionary is one of the finest books written about the written word. It's a dictionary, but it is much more than that. It's important to note the subtitle of this book (A Treasury of Terms and Literary Quotations for Readers and Writers) because this subtitle gets to the heart of what makes this book so special.

To begin, this dictionary/book lists over 2,000 useful words for describing things, animals, and people to include the following subgroups: shapes, patterns, surface and textures, size, position, relation, proportion, emblems, symbols, light, colors, building structures, terrain and landscape, climate, clouds, species adjectives (e.g., bovine and many many more), types, technical terminology, perceived attractiveness, body types, face, heads, hair, eyes, noses, ears, mouths, lips, teeth, skin coloring, hand, fingers, legs, knees, feet, jaws, walk, voices, necks, mannerisms, general appearance, and more. In other words, this dictionary will help reader, writer, and observer to economically and accurately identify his (or her) surroundings.
Just one look at the pages of this book should be enough to hook those who enjoy the art of description.

There are some great words in this book (some common, but many underused useful words are listed as well--even the most well-versed will find hundreds of gems in this book), but what really makes this book essential for those interested in accurately (and beautifully) describing their surroundings is Gramb's inclusion of passages from great literature. This gives the reader a real sense for how powerful (and beautiful) words are. Authors on display include Carver, Twain, Cummings, Updike, Baldwin, Percy, Dickens, Melville, Hawthorne, Woolf, Faulkner, Joyce, Orwell, Nabokov, and many more.

Those interested in words, description, and great writing will love this book. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

5.0 out of 5 stars Words, Words, Words, May 17, 2009

By 

Evelyn K. Jennigs - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Describer's Dictionary: A Treasury of Terms and Literary Quotations for Readers& Writers (Hardcover)

This book is easy to use and full of ideas. Love it and use it all the time.