THE STORY: The time is 1878 and the place is Meanly, Kansas, a little whistle stop on the Santa Fe, which has quieted down of late and wants to stay that way. Consequently, the Sheriff, prodded by the local wives and mothers, has bought a one-way t
With its unparalleled coverage of English slang of all types (from 18th-century cant to contemporary gay slang), and its uncluttered editorial apparatus, Cassell's Dictionary of Slang was warmly received when its first edition appeared in 1998. 'Brilliant.' said Mark Lawson on BBC2's The Late Review; 'This is a terrific piece of work - learned, entertaining, funny, stimulating' said Jonathan Meades in The Evening Standard.But now the world's best single-volume dictionary of English slang is about to get even better. Jonathon Green has spent the last seven years on a vast project: to research in depth the English slang vocabulary and to hunt down and record written instances of the use of as many slang words as possible. This has entailed trawling through more than 4000 books - plus song lyrics, TV and movie scripts, and many newspapers and magazines - for relevant material. The research has thrown up some fascinating results
This is the annotated edition including the rare biographical essay by Edwin E. Slosson called "H. G. Wells - A Major Prophet Of His Time". In "Kipps" Mr. Wells emphasizes an unfamiliar phase of his many-sided talent. Unlike the majority of his fiction, dealing with unknown worlds and with futurity, "Kipps" is a story of the present moment and living people. Its scene is England—Folkestone and nearby towns of the south coast mainly, and London for a few chapters —and its characters all move in that social world that is constantly struggling for a position beyond and above it. Kipps' himself emerges in Mr. Wells's first chapter as a mere boy on his way to a strange home, with his uncle and aunt. He passes through several evolutionary stages from poverty to affluence, and from affluence through a despondent moment of failure and despair to the competency and comfort of a secure position in the world to which he belongs by birth and breeding. His career is portrayed by Mr. Wells with extraordinary vigor, truth, and humor. It scarcely exceeds rashness to say that not since "David Copperfield" has English literature been enriched with so remarkable a story of the growth of a boy through youth into manhood.
These lively and entertaining folk tales from one of Britain's most ancient counties are vividly retold by Leicestershire Guild of Storytelling. Their origins lost in the oral tradition, these thirty stories from Leicestershire and Rutland reflect the wisdom (and eccentricities) of the counties and its people.Leicestershire and Rutland have a rich and diverse collection of tales, from stories of epic battles and heroic deeds to legends of mythical creatures and ghostly goings-on. These stories, illustrated with twenty-five line drawings, bring alive the landscape of the counties’ rolling hills and fertile plains.Leicestershire Guild of Storytelling is a group of professional storytellers who have been collecting and telling traditional stories for fifteen years. They regularly organise festivals and storytelling events.