Product Description

From the Bloomsbury Group to the Camberwell Carrot, Samuel Johnson to Boris Johnson and Oranges and Lemons to apples and pears, Brewer’s Dictionary of London Phrase & Fable gathers together the people, places, events, culture, anecdotes, slang and catchphrases that make London one of the greatest cities on Earth.

Perfect for looking up something interesting that you’ve found on your travels through the city, or simply browsing through to impress your London friends with the breadth of your knowledge – you’re bound to find something that they’ve never even heard of before.

So whether you’re a Londoner through and through, a newly-arrived citizen, a frequent visitor or you prefer to experience this bustling and cacophonous city from the safety of your armchair, Brewer’s Dictionary of London Phrase & Fable will bring the heart and soul of London to your bookshelf.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10227 in Books
• Published on: 2009-09-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 608 pages

Review
It's a treasure trove ... --Robert Elms, BBC London, October 12, 2009

If The London Encyclopedia is your sage and venerable grandfather ... Brewer's [Dictionary of London Phrase & Fable] is your funky godfather, full of genial triviality and good humour ... --Time Out, Big Smoke blog, October 19, 2009

... if you have any interest at all in the story of London, you will find much ... to keep you reading.
--World Wide Words, Michael Quinion, October 31, 2009

From the Author
Some of my favourite parts of this book are the bits I didn't write myself: the illustrative quotations accompanying hundreds of the entries in the dictionary. A selection of these gives a flavour of the book as a whole.
"All within the sound of Bow Bell are in reproch called cochnies, and eaters of buttered tostes." (1617)
"... for you can hear them outside the house; they generally speak four or five at a time, and every one in a Mitcham whisper, which is very like a shout." (1892)
"When the Cockney is surprised and incredulous and says, 'Would you Adam and Eve it?' he slyly spreads his unbelief so as to cast a shadow of doubt on the story of creation in the first book of Genesis." (1934)
"Hard done by? A less than ideal world you live in? You're having a bubble, Frank [Lampard], as they say in your native East London." (2007)

About the Author
Russ Willey is a native Londoner whose family’s London roots date back 200 years. He is the author of Chambers London Gazetteer.

Customer Reviews

Great gift
If you are looking for a present for those difficult to please men in your life look no further than Brewer's London. Witty, informative, easy to dip into and addictive, uncles, brothers, sons, dads and grandads will love this for Christmas. I am just about to order my fourth copy and everyone I know who has seen it, knows someone who'd love it. Ps Girls love it too.

He who is tired of London should read this book
Would you know a Fulham virgin if you met her? You might know Cockney Rhyming Slang, but would you understand Palare if you heard it? Would you take offence being referred to as being as common as Ratcliff Highway? Read this excellent book and you'll learn that and much more in a volume that uncovers details of London's rich heritage found nowhere else. This wonderfully written, eclectic and quirky book is compulsive reading, as difficult to put down as a box of chocolates and totally non-fattening. Unless, of course, you're the Fat Boy of Peckham.