Through the centuries, men and women have exercised their highest powers of invention and wit in speaking ill of one another. And in most of us there is a streak of malice which secretly delights in the pointed put-down, and relishes the audacious phrase we would hardly dare to use ourselves!
This is a light-hearted collection of literary and historical insults in an entertaining arrangement that will delight the casual reader and serve as a useful, if dangerous, work of reference.
Nearly 1,000 derogatory quotations encompass virtually all aspects of the human condition, and range in tone from the venomous to the merely bitchy. Author Nancy McPhee has drawn from a wide variety of sources, old and new, covering American, Canadian, British and European history, politics and literature. Her informal tongue-in-cheek commentary demonstrates that while styles have changed with the years, a razor wit and a fine ear for language are always in vogue.
Accompanied by original illustrations by David Shaw, and with a complete cross-referenced index, The Book of Insults should have a permanent place in your library.
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