witty...impressive surrealism...inexplicably hilarious

James O’Brien has become the conscience of liberal Britain

Almost indecently enjoyable

I know few broadcasters as consistently, forensically, brilliant as James O’ Brien. Here, he shows us -- with empathy, edge and exquisite comedy -- how it happens

In the age of the tweet, such verbal ability increasingly seems like a superpower

A simply brilliant read ... I love this book!

A total joy. If you feel like the world is going to hell in a handcart, here's the brakes

This book is required reading to slice through the rhetoric, slogans & bluster of politics and politicians. James is the broadcaster we need right now, setting the world to rights one call at a time

Funny, clever and alarming ... a modern day travelogue through the airwaves with all the mistrust, misinformation, contradictions and manipulation laid bare

Intelligent, funny and worrying. An unsurprisingly brilliant read from a great broadcaster. I vehemently wish that everyone would read it. The World and this country would be a better place if they did.

Funny, wise and passionate. Like Yoda with better grammar.

I am stupidly excited about this book

This book made me smarter. And it made me laugh and nod my head, all the while thinking ‘bloody hell, I wish I could argue like James’. Cogent, necessary, insightful and often very funny.

The oral equivalent of Greco-Roman wrestling

Generous, severe, principled, eloquent and righteous.

James O'Brien is the epitome of a smug, sanctimonious, condescending, obsessively politically-correct, champagne-socialist public schoolboy Remoaner

In Williams's exuberant, meticulously researched debut, the daughter of a lexicographer devotes her life to an alternative dictionary... Deeply satisfying. Williams's feminist take on language will move readers

The Herculean efforts required to assemble the Oxford English Dictionary are retold, this time from a fictionalized, distaff point of view, in Williams' debut novel. ...Underlying this panoramic account are lexicographical and philosophical interrogatives: Who owns language, does language reflect or affect, who chooses what is appropriate, why is one meaning worthier than another, what happens when a word mutates in meaning? ...The result is a satisfying amalgam of truth and historical fiction

Do words mean different things to men and women? That is the question at the heart of Williams' thoughtful and gentle first novel based on original research in the Oxford English Dictionary archives... A lexicographer's dream of a novel, this is a lovely book to get lost in, an imaginative love letter to dictionaries

[The Dictionary of Lost Words] was so excellent, and is the story we all need right now. Shining on important light on the lost stories of women's lives, it was hugely thought-provoking

Enchanting, sorrowful, and wonderfully written, the book is a one-of-a-kind celebration of languageand its importance in our lives. A must-have

The Dictionary of Lost Words concerns itself with the gaps between the lines of the dominant male narrative, choosing instead the usually overlooked, everyday language of ordinary women. It's a masterfully written, beautiful first novel that tells a fascinating story of language, love and loss

An utterly compelling and beautiful story that effortlessly merges history, gender politics, love and loss. To say this book is ambitious is an understatement, but Williams delivers brilliantly, and whilst I enjoyed the story in itself, the book has prompted me to want to discover more about this history and context of the OED... Without doubt, this is my favourite book of the year so far and, I suspect, it will be in the running come the end of the year too

This thought-provoking and atmospheric novel about dictionaries will have you enthralled... A gorgeous story about women, the power of language and an insight into the work of lexicographers

Seamlessly blending fact and fiction, this is a beautifully crafted book, filled with memorable characters

Real and fictional timeliness are intertwined in this inventive new novel

An elegantly constructed love story full of memorable characters... Pippa Bennett-Warner captures them all, and her warm, slightly husky voice enhances the magic

An elegantly constructed love story full of characters we grow care deeply about. Pippa Bennett-Warner's warm, slightly husky voice enhances the magic... a flawless listening experience