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The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams - 4* - My Review

“How I longed to talk with someone about women’s words, their place in the dictionary, the flaws in method that might have meant they were being left out.”

Historical fiction about the development of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), women’s rights, class struggles, and the protagonist’s coming of age. It begins when protagonist Esme is five, and her father is part of the team that is compiling the dictionary. They work in the Scriptorium, where Esme often ventures. Her mother died in childbirth, and she is often looked after by the household staff. She develops a keen interest in words. She starts collecting “lost words” that are spoken but not included in the dictionary. Many of these words have to do with women, and the way women have often been marginalized throughout history.

The storyline follows Esme’s coming-of-age. It includes Esme’s forays into women’s suffrage movement, friendship with performers in the theatre crowd, and romantic relationships. Esme’s life portrays how difficult it was to be an intelligent achievement-oriented woman in the early 20th century. Her life is full of obstacles and sorrows. The onset of World War I did not help matters.

I especially enjoyed the parts about the OED. The main drawback, for me, is that once Esme becomes an adult, she seems to change into a more contemporary woman than the time period warrants. I enjoyed the first half more than the second. I think it lost its way toward the end, especially the epilogue. I recommend reading the author’s note at the end, which provides information on what is real (quite a lot) and what is fiction. It also reveals more about the author’s purpose in writing this book.

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