Caught in the Web of Words

Caught in the Web of Words

K.M. Elisabeth Murray • Oxford University Press

ISBN-10: 0300089198 · ISBN-13: 978‑0300089196 · 2001 · FIRST THUS

Live offer for this book: 8 live copies of this book from $4.82 (as of 2026-08-31).

Dimensions: 0.8 × 0.5 × 0.1 in; 15.4 Oz

Canonical book record

Completeness 64

Cover quality: low resolution

2manybooks editorial

Further Details Title: Caught in the Web of Words Condition: New Subtitle: James Murray and the Oxford English Dictionary Author: K.M. Elisabeth Murray Format: Paperback ISBN-10: 0300089198 EAN: 9780300089196 ISBN: 9780300089196 Publisher: Yale University Press Genre: Biography Topic: Language & Reference Release Date: 03/01/2001 Description: This unique and celebrated biography describes how a largely self-educated boy from a small village in Scotland entered the world of scholarship and became the first editor of the Oxford English Dictionary and a great lexicographer. It also provides an absorbing account of how the dictionary was written, the personalities of the people working on it, and the endless difficulties that nearly led to the whole enterprise being abandoned. “It is a magnificent story of a magnificent man, one of the finest biographies of the twentieth century, as its subject was one of the finest human beings of the nineteenth.” —Anthony Burgess “A moving and dramatic story . . . sometimes tragic, often comic, ultimately triumphant.” — Times (London) “A biography that possesses many of the virtues of James Murray himself—grace, humor, intelligence, curiosity, and scholarship.” — Time “In her vivid biography, Murray’s granddaughter brings his remarkable personality to life, and provides an unexpectedly fascinating account of the OED’s long and difficult birth.” — Times Literary Supplement “A gripping, engaging story; endearing, too. The daily round of a big Victorian family, with its jokes, games, and treasured seaside holidays, is entrancingly evoked.” — Sunday Times (London) Language: English Item Height: 197mm Item Length: 127mm Item Weight: 295g Release Year: 2001 Missing Information? Please contact us if any details are missing and where possible we will add the information to our listing.

Book metadata

Marketplace observations

8 live copies of this book from $4.82 (as of 2026-08-31).

Contributors

Community tags

Inferred themes

Machine-inferred from catalog text. Not verified subjects.

Community signals

Have: 4 · Like: 2 · Rating: 4.3 / 5 (4)