Praise for Unabridged : Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize One of Smithsonian''s 10 Best History Books of 2025 A Washington Independent Review of Books Best Book of 2025 An Amazon Editors'' Choice Best History Book of October A Literary Hub Most Anticipated Book of 2025 "With some envy, I report that the journalist Stefan Fatsis has written actual definitions for more than a dozen words in the Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary . Fatsis provides an excellent primer on Merriam-Webster''s role in the culture wars, with thorough accounts of the dictionary''s approach to the N-word, the F-word, "Covid-19" and "woke" . Fatsis'' history is charmingly told . Its best passages deal with Merriam office life: a debate over the coarser meaning of Dutch oven or a wistful potluck lunch for a retiring colleague. At times, it felt like a Frederick Wiseman documentary about the last days of lexicography, and I wanted more.''"-- Dan Piepenbring, New York Times Book Review "A warm, personal paean to Merriam-Webster and its staffers . The real pleasure of Unabridged lies in its descriptions of the scrupulous deliberations of Merriam''s lexicographers as they weigh the sense of words, waiting patiently -- sometimes for years -- to see whether a neologism is a flash-in-the-pan or something that will endure .
Fatsis conveys clearly just what a slow, ethical process this editing work is -- not reactive, partisan or, perish the thought, programmatic."-- Dennis Duncan, Washington Post "Abounds with curious particulars and zesty turns of phrase . For Mr. Fatsis, the dictionary is an item ''as ubiquitous as a spatula'' and as likely to be gathering dust but, in his experience, both deeply serious in purpose and endlessly diverting."-- Henry Hitchings, Wall Street Journal "Fatsis'' capacious, and at times score-settling, personal history of the reference book reveals what the dictionary can still tell us about language in modern life . Fatsis'' most compelling writing involves his work digging into history."-- The Nation "This book is juicy. It''s just great.
Much more dynamic and animated than I thought a book about dictionaries would be."-- Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone "Perfect for word nerds . [A] lively history of dictionaries that also looks at how they reflect and ratify changes in our language."-- Minnesota Star Tribune "For this spirited examination of the state of language, Fatsis embedded at Merriam-Webster, seeing firsthand how the vernacular sausage is made. Just who gets to decide when "doomscrolling" and "rizz" make the cultural cut, or how to treat questions of pronoun usage and politically fraught verbiage? The questions are thornier--and older--than you may have guessed."-- New York Times "Stefan''s book is about the dictionary, obviously. But it''s also about this fascinating history over how people have tried to define American English."-- Gene Demby, NPR CodeSwitch "[Fatsis] once again combines his penchant for indefatigable research with an approachable style, making each chapter relatable and thought-provoking.
"-- Bookreporter "Print may going out of style, but sometimes a lexicographer''s work can still be a matter of life and death . Between a robust history lesson on American dictionaries and exploration of how the Internet and A.I. have changed the field, Fatsis brings his setting and coworkers to life on the page . Unabridged reveals how we''ve grappled with a shared language, with the public good versus profit, and, above all else, the personal fascinations that make us who we are."-- Sophia Lee, Cultured Magazine "An exceptional, seminal and groundbreaking study, Unabridged: The Thrill of (and Threat to) the Modern Dictionary by Stefan Fatsis is fascinating, informative, original, and thoroughly ''reader friendly'' . takes readers to the heart of an industry in flux, celebrating as it does the sheer thrill and wonder of words . truly exceptional and unreservedly recommended.
"-- Midwest Book Review "Exhaustively researched, highly entertaining, and often hilarious . The book''s format nicely reflects its content with each chapter consisting of a word or term accompanied by its relevant definition . All in all, Unabridged is bound to make you a more thoughtful writer and a better Scrabble player."-- Washington Independent Review of Books "A love letter to language . Lively, well-researched, and often entertaining, Unabridged is an essential resource for anyone interested in understanding how language evolves. Stefan Fatsis''s erudite, fascinating fourth book is an entertaining deep dive into the history of dictionaries and how language continues to evolve in the 21st century."-- Shelf Awareness "Capacious and revealing, this is a logophile''s dream."-- Publishers Weekly , starred review "Word lovers everywhere will appreciate this book"-- Library Journal "A romp in the land of lexicography .
An entertaining, instructive look into how words make their way into the dictionary."-- Kirkus Reviews "A funny, inquisitive romp through the past, present, and future of lexicography. Unabridged makes the work of dictionary-making . feel vital and exciting."-- Booklist "If you love language, you''ll find yourself thoroughly delighted by Unabridged . It''s smart and funny--Fatsis, a wonderful writer, is a perfect guide into the weird, fascinating, and urgent world of words."-- Susan Orlean, national bestselling author of Joyride and The Library Book "Word nerds, rejoice! With this deep dive into the dictionary, Stefan Fatsis takes readers on an extraordinary, eye-opening journey. The writing in these pages is beautiful, the research impeccable, and the joy of discovery contagious.
I loved every word of this book."-- Jonathan Eig, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for King: A Life "An erudite, charming, positively rollicking account of American lexicography. Fatsis reveals, in loving detail, the process by which our language is categorized, codified, and of course defined, word by word by word. I''d say that the chapters on slurs and pronouns are particularly eye-opening and illuminating--because they are!--but the entire book is as revelatory as it is joyful."-- Benjamin Dreyer, author of the New York Times bestseller Dreyer''s English " Unabridged is unputdownable. Is that in Merriam-Webster? I''m not going to check."-- Ken Jennings, host of Jeopardy! and author of Brainiac "The author of the essential paean to competitive Scrabble now brings us another close-up look at words and the people who are obsessed with them. Unabridged is a fascinating and eloquent dive into Merriam-Webster and the world of dictionaries that is-- by definition--another essential read.
"-- Meg Wolitzer, New York Times bestselling author of The Interestings and The Female Persuasion "A vivid and uncannily accurate picture of what it''s like to produce dictionaries--and a poignant tale of a rarefied and idealistic world that''s rapidly vanishing. I read it in one gulp, which left me with an Unabridged -sized lump in my throat."-- Jesse Sheidlower, former editor at large, Oxford English Dictionary and author of The F-Word " Unabridged is a whip-smart, entertaining, and thoughtful chronicle of the prospects for dictionaries at a time when Google--or, even more so, AI--might seem to be poised to take over all their functions."-- Ben Yagoda, author of Gobsmacked! The British Invasion of American English "A captivating look at the inner life of dictionaries. For anyone who''s ever had a favorite word."-- Mignon Fogarty, host of the Grammar Girl podcast "Stefan Fatsis has written the book I have wanted to read for years: the untold story of the American Language and how it has been curated and developed by the editors at Merriam-Webster. But into this fascinating narrative Fatsis himself becomes part of the story as a rookie lexicographer working his way into the system, giving this book an extra dimension, charm, and wit. You find yourself cheering for Fatsis to score a definition like a Little League parent pulling for their kid.
"-- Paul Dickson, author of The Dickson Baseball Dictionary and G.I. Jive: A Dictionary of Words at War "Right from the opening pages of Unabridged , you know you''re in the hands of an author who''s having an absolute blast discovering the story that unfolds before you. Read on and Fatsis''s joy will quickly become your own."-- Drew Magary, author of The Hike and The Postmortal "People have to decide what ''gets into the dictionary.'' This witty book gives us a look into the Rooms Where It Happens."-- John McWhorter, author of Nine Nasty Words and Pronoun Trouble Praise for Stefan Fatsis: "An engrossing, inside look at the strange and rarefied world of competitive Scrabble. It''s a pleasure to experience vicariously a level of play that I''ll never achieve!"-- Will Shortz, New York Times crossword editor, on Word Freak "[Fatsis] writes with affectionate zeal about the game and the fraternity of brilliant, lonely, and otherwise dysfunctional oddballs it attracts.
"-- New York Times , on Word Freak " Word Freak