In his erudite, fascinating fourth book, Unabridged, journalist and amateur lexicographer Stefan Fatsis (Word Freak) dives into the history of dictionaries in the United States, the process by which new words are "officially" added to the language, and the threats and challenges facing language. At once a chronicle of his time at Merriam-Webster and a love letter to language, Unabridged examines differing philosophies of word inclusion and considers how dictionaries can remain relevant in the digital age.
Fatsis begins with Noah Webster himself, recounting Webster's early efforts at dictionary publishing. Fatsis meets lexicographers, handles rare editions of dictionaries, and spends untold hours at Merriam-Webster's elegant headquarters in Springfield, Mass.--all detailed in his ruminative history of a largely under-the-radar world that nevertheless has helped shape American thought and language for more than two centuries.
Although Fatsis is a self-professed dictionary lover, he understands that language changes--and that dictionaries and other resources must meet the moment. Thus, he delves into the acquisition and painstaking definition of neologisms, or new words; examines Webster's approach to handling racial and other slurs; discusses the shifting definitions and spectrum of pronouns; and wrestles with the looming question of artificial intelligence and its effect on language.
While obviously appealing to word nerds and writers, Fatsis's narrative is more broadly relevant to anyone who speaks, reads, and writes in American English. It provides a thorough, thoughtful history of dictionaries and the language they both shape and record, while championing the dictionary's continued relevance in the 21st century. Lively, well-researched, and often entertaining, Unabridged is an essential resource for anyone interested in understanding how language evolves. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams