The Meaning of Tingo
Adam Jacot de Boinod
book reviews:
· general fiction
· chick lit/romance
· sci-fi/fantasy
· graphic novels
· nonfiction
· audio books

Click here for the curledup.com RSS Feed

· author interviews
· children's books @
   curledupkids.com
· DVD reviews @
   curledupdvd.com

newsletter
win books
buy online
links

home

for authors
& publishers


for reviewers

click here to learn more




Buy *The Meaning of Tingo: And Other Extraordinary Words from Around the World* by Adam Jacot de Boinod online

The Meaning of Tingo: And Other Extraordinary Words from Around the World
Adam Jacot de Boinod
Penguin
Paperback
224 pages
February 2007
rated 3 1/2 of 5 possible stars
previous reviewnext review

I am not sure how many opportunities in a given day you will have to use the Gaelic phrase for head butting, which is “purr,” but should you need to know the foreign correspondents for various words, phrases and sayings, The Meaning of Tingo is the book you can’t leave home without. This entertaining book offers up hundreds of dictionary-style words in various languages that will have you scratching your head in wonder even as you practice the correct pronunciation of tunillattukkuuq, the Inuit word for “the act of eating at a cemetery.”

Author Adam Jacot de Boinod picked up an Albanian dictionary one day and found 27 different words for eyebrow types, which inspired him to write this collection of interesting curiosities. Let’s just say this book is no neko-neko, Indonesian for “one who has a creative idea which only makes things worse.” In fact, you will have a blast using these catchy foreign phrases on your friends, and they won’t have any idea what you are talking about. Imagine how intelligent and well traveled you can pretend to be! Now that makes me bjor-reifr, or Old Icelandic for “cheerful from beer drinking.”

Whether you have a passion for words (vokabulyu in Russian) or just like reading trivia that is fun and educational at the same time, The Meaning of Tingo is packed with all kinds of goodies for the brain palate. Whether or not you actually use these words in your world travels is another story, but if you do go to Japan, be sure to avoid the suna o kamu yo na. I won’t tell you what it means, but trust me; you will want to avoid it!



Originally published on Curled Up With A Good Book at www.curledup.com. © Marie D. Jones, 2006

buy *The Meaning of Tingo: And Other Extraordinary Words from Around the World* online
click here for more info
Click here to learn more about this month's sponsor!


fiction · sf/f · comic books · nonfiction · audio
newsletter · free book contest · buy books online
review index · links · · authors & publishers
reviewers

site by ELBO Computing Resources, Inc.