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The oddness of phonetic english

Nov4

Last week someone gave me a really unusual book: Edition 11 of Decimal Clasification and Relativ Index by Melvil Dewey. Which is interesting because it is written in phonetic English.  The library at my employer was having a clear-out and this was one of the books destined for the skip. Or something.

I’m not really an advocate of phonetic English because I think that English spelling is charming. The oddness and inconsistency amuse me.

But language is dynamic and spellings and usage change. That’s how it should be and it happens naturally.

The introduction is written with as many changes as could be and the rest of the book with more minor changes. According to the introduction this is to ease the changes in gently so they would be more readily adopted by the general public. But I guess it never really took off.

Plugs

Sep14

I’m covering some extra work at the moment while we’re temporarily short-staffed. Some of that work has to do with the standardization of plugs.

Which turns out to be fascinating. There are fourteen different types of plugs. Who knew? Well, probably lots of people, but not me.

The country with the greatest diversity of plug use is Jordan, which has seven different types in use.

For more fascinating plug facts, there is the World Plugs website.

 

Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops

Jul2

This charming little book was a gift and is not something I would have picked up for myself. Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops by Jen Campbell is a collection of funny things customers have said to salespeople in Ripping Yarns, the Edinburgh Bookshop and others.

Some of the quotes are hilarious and some are a little tragic. But it’s very amusing and made me think that working in a bookshop might not be as relaxing as it seems! It makes a lovely gift 🙂

Not 50 Shades of Grey

Jun28

So, loads of people are reading this book which is apparently pornographic fanfic of Twilight. Seeing as Twilight was offensive enough, but not IMHO that badly written, I didn’t want to read something worse. But, so many people are talking about it that I really want to have an opinion.

Fortunately for me, the amazing Jennifer Armintrout is doing an hilarious chapter by chapter take down of this ridiculous book. It calls out all the abusive bullshit masquerading as a consensual BDSM relationship as well as the inconsistent, illogical, bad writing. So very funny.

What I think I do

Feb20
I love a meme. Have I mentioned that?

The latest meme I have particularly liked is the ‘What I think I do’ poster. Here are two that apply to me. And yes, this is what I think I do.

These were sent to me so I can’t link to the originator. I would give credit if I could. 
This entry was posted on February 20, 2012, in Fun. 1 Comment

Announcing a read of A Dance with Dragons!

Jun8
Inspired by Leigh Butler’s fabulous A Read of Ice and Fire blog on Tor.com, I am going to do a chapter by chapter commentary of A Dance with Dragons. When not gushing about the general awesomeness of GRRM, I will be focussing on the writing.

And as I have temporarily suspended the 100 Books in 2011 challenge in order to re-read A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords and A Feast for Crows, I shall be prepared to spot all the clever hints and tricks. In theory. Part of me knows GRRM is a smarter writer than I am a reader. I’m so excited.

What I’m currently reading

Mar10
I got tagged by Martin at From Sand to Glass to do another book meme. It would be rude not to. The rules are:

1. Take a picture of the books you are reading currently and add to your post.
2. Describe the books and if you are enjoying them or not. Why?
3. For every book you are reading you have to tag one person.
4. Leave the person a comment letting them know you tagged them.

So here’s the picture:

And the books are:
1. Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan. I’m about halfway through it and I’m really enjoying it. It’s filled with beautiful pictures of the solar system and is an excursion through our knowledge of the solar system circa 1995. It’s completely absorbing. I nearly missed my stop on the tube.
2. Sacred House: Where Women Weave Words into the Earth by Carolyn Hillyer. I’ve only read the first couple of chapters and it’s beautiful. It’s stories and poetry and mythology. Loving it.
3. Dare to Connect by Susan Jeffers. This is a re-read and the book I read if I have five minutes in the morning before I leave for work. It’s about learning how to connect with people and to trust. It’s quite useful.
4. Walking on Alligators by Susan Shaughnessy, which is a book of meditations for writers. I’ve only read a few and they are quite thought-provoking. I like them and I think I will share some of my favourites on this blog.
I’m tagging:
Meg
Freya Morris
Home Made by Baya
Elana

And anyone else who would like to share!