O Thou Improper, Thou Uncommon Noun: A Bobtailed, Generally Chronological Listing of Proper Names That Have Become Improper ... [Hardcover]

Willard R. Espy (Author), Illus. by Paul Degen (Illustrator)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Clarkson N. Potter; BOMC ed. edition (1978)
• ASIN: B000GX3102
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,494,282 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delight to read, February 5, 2002

By 

"eanewsom" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: O Thou Improper, Thou Uncommon Noun: An Etymology of Words That Once Were Names (Hardcover)

The book begins with a warning from the author: "Taken massively, Improper, Uncommon Nouns are dangerous to the health. Try one here, one there. If there are no disagreeable side effects, such as breaking out in a rash, taste again, but sparingly and at intervals. Otherwise you may become seriously ill." Perhaps I have an unusually strong tolerance for nouns, but my only symptom upon reading the first hundred pages at once was a difficulty in putting it down.
Espy divides his book into subjects instead of working alphabetically, which allows a natural flow from one definition to the next. This ease of progression, combined with Espy's wit, makes the book read more like a novel than a dictionary.

3.0 out of 5 stars Very nice, December 10, 2011

By 

Debnance at Readerbuzz (Alvin, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: O Thou Improper, Thou Uncommon Noun: An Etymology of Words That Once Were Names (Hardcover)

A happy story: I started The Lightning Thief, a children's book,and then received this book. The first chapter of O Thou deals with words taken from Greek gods, and each entry in the chapter tells a little about each god and why he was important. The Lightning Thief is the story of a boy who is half-god and he is being sought by many other Greek mythological creatures. O Thou gave me enough info about each god and mythological creature mentioned in The Lightning Thief to help me anticipate events in the story. Very nice.