The 30 Best One-Star Amazon Reviews of . . . The Dictionary
"This Dictionary Has Been Prepared for the Dumbing
of the Western World."
Oh yes. In this the latest installment of my one-star reviews series, I decided to go back to the basics: words themselves. Or, to be more precise, our compendiums of words, and what they mean. You wouldn’t think internet reviewers would have particularly strong opinions about the dictionary, as a book, because generally dictionaries = good, but you would be wrong about that. Internet reviewers have strong opinions about everything.
I spread my search over a few different versions of the dictionary to find the best (read: weirdest, dumbest, most specific, and most aggressive) one-star reviews. I also included a few of the omnipresent “too small to read” variety, which pop up just about everywhere you go, and are usually slapped down by another commenter suggesting glasses. However, not wanting to spur any dictionary infighting, I have mixed the reviews from different editions together here. Have fun.
[Click to enlarge.]
Emily Temple
Emily Temple is the managing editor at Lit Hub. Her first novel, The Lightness, was published by William Morrow/HarperCollins in June 2020. You can buy it here.
