A Handbook of Volapuk [Print] [Paperback]

Andrew Drummond (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2006

As a wildly comic and surreal satire of every pedantry going, it could hardly be bettered, - The Independent

This seriously comic novel is one of a kind, - Sunday Herald

An entertaining comic ride into a most peculiar linguistic curiosity The Age

Volapük. An embarrassing medical condition, a Bulgarian seaside resort or a universal language invented by a German priest and in which the letter R is frowned upon?

The Volapük Language Movement flourished in the late nineteenth century, despite bitter rivalry with Esperanto and internecine feuding. In this novel, Drummond constructs a fantastic world, full of chimeras, civil disobedience, hot-air ballooning, private lunatic asylums and church organs, and the occasional Arbroath Smokie.

It s April 1891 and time for the Annual General Meeting of the Edinburgh Society for the Propagation of a Universal Language. The General Secretary, Mr Justice, a militant champion of Volapük, is locked in battle with Dr Bosman, a shameless apologist for Esperanto. When the Annual General Meeting does not deliver the expected victory for Mr Justice, he decides to kidnap Dr Bosman and teach him a lesson a grammatical one in the conducive setting of the Mavisbank Asylum.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Andrew Drummond was born in Edinburgh and educated at the University of Aberdeen, where he studied modern languages. He has published a number of translations from German, and his first novel, An Abridged History of the Construction of the Railway Line between Garve, Ullapool and Lochinver, was published by Polygon and shortlisted for a Saltire First Book of the Year Award in 2004. He lives in Edinburgh.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Birlinn Ltd (June 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1904598676
• ISBN-13: 978-1904598671
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,421,048 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and intriguing, August 19, 2006

By 

James T. Henry "Jim Henry" (Stockbridge, Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Handbook of Volapuk (Paperback)

I'll readily agree with everything Rick Harrison said above, and add that I found the 19th-century writing style as convincing as in any historical novel about the period I've read. The structure of the book, with the preface and postscript by the phrenologist who discovered Mr. Justice's papers and edited them for publication, and the main section with Mr. Justice's narrative of his travels interspersed with lessons in Volapük (more or less integrated into the narrative, in amusing ways) is very satisfying; and there are a number of nifty puzzles and Easter eggs for the sharp reader with some knowledge of the place and period (and the early international language movement), which don't, I think, impair the novel's readability for the person with only an average knowledge of 19th-century Scotland.

It's probably worth mentioning that there are some minor fantasy elements as well - it might be a spoiler to say what they are, but I'm tentatively planning to nominate this for the Hugo Award, depending on what other excellent new books I might read during the rest of the year.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars highly entertaining, July 24, 2006

By 

R. Harrison (Alachua County, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Handbook of Volapuk (Paperback)

This is a very entertaining historical novel with several scenes that made me laugh out loud. The narrator is involved in the census, the universal language movement, and in dealing with a difficult travel companion. Along the way he tries to teach Volapuk to anyone who will listen to him (and the lessons are included in the book, so you can actually learn the basics of classical Volapuk by studying this text). His conflicts with the proponents of other constructed languages are hilarious and will seem startlingly familiar to anyone who has been involved in this milieu. note: I got my copy from amazon.co.uk

4.0 out of 5 stars A Handbook of Volapuk, January 18, 2011

By 

EB2B - See all my reviews

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This review is from: A Handbook of Volapuk (Paperback)

An interesting and humorous historical novel that made me think of Carlyle's "Sartor Resartus". It might be a little obscure and difficult for anyone who has never heard of Volapuk, or the universal language movement but it is fun to read, and the Volapuk lessons sprinkled throughout the book give you a chance to see what it's all about.