Ogilvie has provided a sprightly, elegant tribute to the ordinary readers...who made up the bulk of the O.E.D.’s work force, largely unpaid and unsung, filling in millions of slips in their spare time ... An engrossing survey ... The real joy of The Dictionary People is to be reminded that any group of people pinned at its intersection will still burst forth every which way, a tapestry of contradictions, noble and ignoble, wild and banal.
Wonderful ... Essentially a delightful grab-bag of brief biographies ... Emphatically demonstrates that even seemingly dry-as-dust scholars weren’t that at all.
Lurid characters ... Eccentric as Ogilvie’s people often are, the language they grapple with is even quirkier and kinkier, and its oddities enliven her book.
Ogilvie resolved to reanimate this dust and restore them to a place of justified importance in the history of the great dictionary. A daunting prospect, requiring years of searching; and one can only imagine that proximity to Murray’s immense task had instilled a different standard for what is difficult than usually obtains ... Affectionate and moving.
Much is made, these days, of making visible people who have been invisible; in this instance, this task seems especially apt. The Dictionary People demonstrates the contributions of those whose lives didn’t necessarily fit neatly into Victorian society. Women may not have been able to attend the launch dinner, but here they are being celebrated at last.
Charming ... The whimsical narrative is also educational, providing extensive insight into the process used to trace the origins of words. Readers will be enthralled.
