I Love Me, Vol. 1: S. Wordrow's Palindrome Encyclopedia [Paperback]

Michael Donner (Author)

Book Description

Series: I Love Me | Publication Date: January 8, 1996

S. Wordrow's Palindrome Encyclopedia revealed and interpreted by Michael Donner. "Packs a record-breaking 35,000 cross-referenced palindromes into a tongue-in-cheek reference book that is a must-have for crossword puzzlers, word lovers, or anyone who loves the absurd."--Houston Tribune; "Silliness is the unabashed point in these 400-plus pages."--Sun-Times (Chicago); "This is surely the most thorough survey of words that come and go the same way."--William Safire, The New York Times Magazine; "Har-har! Rah-Rah!"--The Orlando Sentinel. A QUALITY PAPERBACK BOOK CLUB selection.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

To aficionados and wordsmiths, palindromes--phrases that read the same backward and forward, such as "bird rib" or "senile felines"--are more than just wordplay; they have a special kind of sense and serve as reminders that all language is only a human construct. There are now many palindrome collections on the market, none more comprehensive than this volume of 3,500 palindromes by the founding editor of Games magazine. "Never odd or even," this is a book to amuse and instruct in the riches of the language.

From Library Journal

A palindrome is a phrase that reads the same backward as forward, e.g., "Nemo, we revere women." Donner, a founding editor of Games magazine, presents a collection here for readers who revel in word games. Donner includes amusing and informative commentaries for many of the entries and frequently acknowledges his sources, enabling the curious to go further. Too many palindromes strain at sense?"Separate tar apes!"?but others delight?"Dog doo! Good God!" OCLC lists dozens of palindrome collections, but the 3500 entries in this volume seem to make it more comprehensive than most. Libraries lacking a good-sized and up-to-date palindrome collection will be well served by this one.?Peter A. Dollard, Alma Coll. Lib., Mt. Pleasant, Mich.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Algonquin Books; 1st edition (January 8, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565121090
• ISBN-13: 978-1565121096
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #644,082 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An outstanding linguistic mind-trip, November 13, 2001

By 

Beeblebrox (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Love Me, Vol. 1: S. Wordrow's Palindrome Encyclopedia (Paperback)

Word-gamers, punners, palindromists, and the simply weird will enjoy this book. It's full of mind-twisting and paradigm-bending palindromes, some of which are old chestnuts (such as Napoleon's lament "Able was ere I saw Elba" or the more complicated "'Naomi, sex at noon taxes', I moan") while others are truly bizarre. Moreover, the author plucks palindromes out of heretofore unexplored territory (airport codes, geographical locations, and the like).

Interestingly, the book is not limited to palindromes; it also features some anagrams as well as word-squares.

Don't expect to read this in one sitting. Your mind will turn to mush if you try to do so!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A mixture of good and sappy, November 4, 2000

By 

norabaron "Book misjudger" (Mpls, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Love Me, Vol. 1: S. Wordrow's Palindrome Encyclopedia (Paperback)

There are spots of brilliance in this book, and unfortunately much larger spots of sappy material, such as codes for airports or peculiar numbers that happen to be palindromes. Palindromes are an art form, perhaps the most constrained art form, and some, like those of J. A. Lindon, are sublime. The author himself contributes a few very good original examples. He also slavishly quotes a number of other sources and in particular is treats everything by Lindon as a work of genius. Lindon was admittedly good, but not quite that good. The author's scholarly work in finding the sources of famous palindromes is not superficial. The worst feature of the book is that the author cannot resist adding an inane 'explanation' after almost all entries. The book would have been better with about half its content excised.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An exhaustive and amusing effort-- impressive, February 6, 2003

By 

Chris Ward (Costa Rica) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Love Me, Vol. 1: S. Wordrow's Palindrome Encyclopedia (Paperback)

Donner deserves high praise for having compiled this item-- I enjoy consulting it from time to time, and my son picks it up when he's looking for a chuckle. Others (below) criticize it for perhaps containing too many examples, and some that seem borderline, but I appreciate the full gamut. Is this book for everyone? No, clearly not-- word nuts may only represent a tiny corner of the world, but we need such books to keep us amused! This one more than fills the bill.