The dictionary of lost words, by Pip Williams

This is one of my favorite books of the past year. Set in Oxford, England at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, it is the story of Esme, daughter of one of the lexicographers who created the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). Esme spends most of her childhood hanging around the Scriptorium, a converted shed in the backyard of the OED's original editor, Dr. Murray. She becomes obsessed with words, especially those that are discarded because they aren't important or significant. She realizes that many of these lost words are deemed of no importance because they relate to marginalized elements of society, such as women and the poor, and she takes it upon herself to save and document the meanings and uses of those words. I loved how the methods used by the lexicographers to research and document the many meanings of words are revealed; it shows the truly monumental effort that went into creating the first edition of the OED. While Esme is a fictional character, many of the others in the book are historical. The backdrop to this story is the fight for women's right to vote and World War I and the impact of both on both men and women. This is a riveting and compulsive read!