A New York Times Notable Book The Professor and the Madman is an extraordinary tale of madness, genius, and the incredible obsessions of two remarkable men that led to the making of the Oxford English Dictionary—and literary history.The making of the OED was one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken. As definitions were collected, the overseeing committee, led by Professor James Murray, … were collected, the overseeing committee, led by Professor James Murray, was stunned to discover that one man, Dr. W. C. Minor, had submitted more than ten thousand. But their surprise would pale in comparison to what they were about to discover when the committee insisted on honoring him. For Dr. Minor, an American Civil War veteran, was also an inmate at an asylum for the criminally insane.
Masterfully researched and eloquently written, The Professor and the Madman “is the linguistic detective story of the decade.” (William Safire, New York Times Magazine)
This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.
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Winchester is an amazing writer! Seems to know a lot about almost everything.
very interesting—–amazing how two totally different people could come together and write and put together such a book—–
The ‘madman’ portrayed in this historical novel forces the reader to realize that because each case of mental illness is unique and painful, it deserves close attention and loving care.
read long time ago fascinating
Love Simon Winchesters representations!
Great book. It was great knowing some of the people that actually contributed material to the Oxford English Dictionary. It’s interesting to know that the one person that contributed the most material suffered greatly with mental health, which was brought on when he served as a medical doctor during the War Between the States. So tragic.
I LOVED this book. I have recommended it to 2 book clubs. Then everyone loved it. It’s a very special book.
An amazing story that few people know about.
Fascinating history of what would have been a boring subject if written by someone else.
This was fascinating: How the Oxford English Dictionary was developed and the treatment of psychosis during that time It’s non-fiction that reads like a thriller.
Fascinating.
i really enjoyed this book. i love any information on dictionaries, etymology, etc. so it was very interesting to me.
I have read this book twice — wow — what an amazing story. Waiting for the movie.
A really good writer and all I did not know about the OED, the amazing story of why it was written and the driven people behind it. As interesting as any mystery story.
Never really thought about how the english dictionary came about, truly fascinating.
Lead how the Oxford Dictionary was built and the people who did it. Well researched and written.