 [Larger view] | Oxymoronica: Paradoxical Wit & Wisdom From History's Greatest Wordsmiths
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| Buy it, Read it, Rejoice! | |
| If you love words, as I do, this one's for you! Dr. Mardy Grothe has given us 227pp. of mankind's best "verbal joustings." To wit: "The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing.If you can fake that, you've got it made" (Groucho Marx); "Personally I know nothing about sex because I've always been married" (Zsa Zsa Gabor); "I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous" (Anonymous); and "I am deeply superficial" (Ava Gardner). Grouped by subject, this collection of "oxymoronica" (a term coined by the author) demonstrates that great wisdom frequently emerges from the coupling of seemingly inherently contradictory words and phrases in the same sentence. I read this book in one sitting just to see what was there; now all that remains is to savor each contribution in the days and months ahead. In closing I offer this oxymoronic tribute to Dr. Grothe's work: Even the poorest among us shall be made rich by the words contained herein! | |
| Absurdity is the spice of life | |
| There's something about oxymorons that bring us up short even as we laugh over the sheer absurdity of it all. Even the name of this little book is an absurdity in itself: "Oxymoronica"?? Reading this volume helps us to stop and think about some of the gems and malapropisms that have enlivened the English language, both planned and unplanned. Here you'll find some of the more classic Berra-isms and the wit and wisdom of Shakespeare, Aristotle, and Confucius, just to name a few. The book is well organized into different areas of life such as politics, art, romance and sex (some of the more delicious examples of oxymoronica fall into this category), marriage and literature. The book makes you reminisce on some of the choicer oxymorons of your own experience; one of my favorites came from a lawyer friend of mine, who, hearing that an upcoming court hearing was being delayed because the judge-from-hell was ill, said "Gee, I hope it's nothing trivial." "Oxymoronica" is full of hilarious examples that match or top that one. Its wisdom should be absorbed slowly, savored bit by delicious bit. To use a classic oxymoron, it's a terribly funny book. | |
| What a gem of a square little book | |
| I laughed and thought and laughed and thought a little more reading this delight of a bitty book. It's even hilarious that it is broken up into chapters like "oxymoronic insults (and a few compliments)". Paradoxical language positively intrigues me. The compilation here is like no book of quotes you've ever read but it is a book of quotes. Quotes that work because they don't work. Backwards uses of words that when used together make perfect sense but no sense at all. Here are a couple of my favorites: "He has not a single redeeming defect." Benjamin Disraeli on William Gladstone "I have never let my schooling interfere with my Education." Mark Twain This book is quick, juicy and a smile maker; a keeper. |
