The Dictionary Story

Oliver Jeffers, a master of thinking outside the box, teams up with Sam Winston for this amazingly creative story about a dictionary who “had ALL the words that had ever been read, which meant she could say All the things that could EVER BE SAID.” But she didn’t tell a story like all the other books, “which is why, one day, this Dictionary decided she would Bring her words to LIFE!”

As the words on Dictionary’s pages appear, so do the characters in the Dictionary’s story, beginning with a hungry alligator, who, “smelling something Delicious on the D pages” heads for a donut. The donut then rolls away farther into the pages to save himself from being eaten.

And on the story goes, passing through the alphabet. The show more characters accumulate and have all sorts of alphabetical adventures, including getting swept up in “Tornado’s TERRIBLE Tantrum.” Eventually Alligator finds Zebra at the end of the book who bolts back to the beginning: “It was chaos!”

Dictionary has to get things back in order, which she does thanks to her friend Alphabet. Alphabet sang the Alphabet Song, and this helped everyone get back to their proper places. Dictionary, having seen the pandemonium story-telling could cause, was now happy to let other books tell their stories instead.

In an interview, Sam Winston explained: “'The idea behind the book is that you’ve got this very rigid structure,’ speaking of a typical dictionary. ‘So where some of the humor and the playfulness and the fun comes from is that this is a book doing something it shouldn’t do.’ Essentially, coming alive.”

The illustrations are a marvel, a captivating combination of photography, painting, ink handwriting, as well as typography for the dictionary definitions.

Evaluation: Kids are bound to increase their vocabularies as they make their way through this delightful action-packed story full of words. As for the definitions that run along the edges of the pages - you would think they weren't part of the story, but you would be vastly underestimating the ingenuity, inventiveness, and effort that went into this book. The definitions provided are unconventional and wonderful - think of The Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce with its humorous and satirical definitions but for young people. They are both informative and endearing. Some examples:

People - “a collective word that refers to human beings. Humans were first invented a long time ago, and before humans there were many different versions that came in multiple sizes and shapes. Originally from a few locations, they are now available around the world.”

Home - “The place where you live or where you were born or where you feel you belong. Homes can be found on streets, in trees and where your heart is.”

Dream - “A word for things people see while asleep. Dreams are the brain’s way of showing you that you’re a lot more imaginative than you think. In the day, we fill our heads with sensible things, but dreams prefer to create strange images, such as glow-in-the-dark marmalade and inflatable chicken’s teeth. Some dreams happen when we are awake: Martin Luther King Jr. had a great one. We’ve been studying dreams for ages, and we still don’t really know what they are.”

Miracle “Something that is amazing or magical for which there seems to be no scientific or common-sense explanation. Often associated with finding a parking space or getting homework done.”

Moose - “a large North American deer. You might think that as the plural of mouse is mice, the plural form of moose could be any number of possibilities: mooses, meese or manymooses; it is, in fact, moose.”

It’s so hard to mention just a sampling of these marvelous definitions. Lucky owners of this book will spend delightful hours going through them. show less

A dictionary decides it wants to have a story like all the other books on the shelf with it. But can such an organized book handle the chaos that comes when words get to choose their own order?

In addition to the zany adventure that runs through the book, each page is framed by original dictionary definitions that enhance the tale and are packed with humorous tidbits and asides. You can speed through the book in minutes and then spend an hour reading all the fine print if you choose.

This 2024 picture book was inspired by A Dictionary Story, a text-based work that Sam Winston originally wrote and designed in 2001 and had published in 2006. You can get a glimpse of it here. This new version is distinctly different though, starting with show more gendering the dictionary as she and taking the tale in new directions with Oliver Jeffers art and Yasmina Cowan's photography. show less

First sentence: Most of the time, all the books knew what they were about. But there was one book who was never quite sure of herself. The dictionary had all the words that had ever been read, which meant she could say all the things that could EVER BE SAID. Yet, when you read her pages from FIRST to LAST, she didn't tell a story like all the other books.

Premise/plot: The Dictionary is envious that all the other books in the library tell a story while she does not. She decides to bring the words within to life. And so it begins...

My thoughts: I definitely enjoyed this quirky, fun, celebratory story. The words that are brought to life make for a lively read. The plot is chaotic and silly, yet in a delightful way--at least for me. I show more enjoyed the resolution. I think this one has potential for readers of multiple ages. I do think young readers could write stories of their own inspired by this one. The possibilities for new stories are endless since the dictionary is vast. It is a creative story book. show less

The dictionary contains all the words, but doesn't tell a story like the other books...until an alligator gets loose from its page and starts a silly chain reaction involving a donut, a ghost, a puddle, the moon, a cloud, a queen, a bar of soap, ink, a tornado, and a zebra. Dictionary didn't want things to get this out of control, she just wanted to tell a story. She engages the help of her friend Alphabet to put everything back together again.

The collage art, using plenty of dictionary pages, is stellar as always.

See also: The Book That Almost Rhymed by Omar Abed

It’s hard to rate this book. The unique concept of a palindrome not just as words but as a story was intriguing.

I think I’d have liked this more if it was not frame in frame. The pictures in the picture were hard for me to follow. I do not much care for manga or graphic novels.

Having firmly established myself as An Old- I’m open to this growing on me and also that it might be good for others if not for me. The boy on the cover at least to me is very derivative of Link from Zelda.

Unrated.

19.50€

[review to come]