The Lover's Dictionary

The Lover’s Dictionary
by David Levithan
2011

This well written book is a fast read. Written in the form of dictionary entries, the author uses definitions to show us the tale of his love affair. At first, I wasn’t sure about what was going on. I thought the definitions were short vignettes of different love affairs but then I realized it was all the same couple. As soon as I discovered that, I slowed down and savored the words. After I finished it, I read it again. Delicious.

I especially liked the authors pairing of word and meaning which is duplicated throughout the book. Joy and pain echo in the short definitions. You will see some part of yourself in its pages. Blemish … healthy …. placid ….traverse …. It’s all there – the language of love.

From the book:
cadence, n.
I have never lived anywhere but New York or New England, but there are times when I’m talking to you and I hit a Southern vowel, or a word gets caught in a Southern truncation, and I know it’s because I’m swimming in your cadences, that you permeate my very language.

Reading this book of simple short prose created a complex reaction to me as a reader. It sparseness allowed me to fill in the blanks. That was refreshing.

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