THE SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER n n n n `Witty and erudite ... stuffed with the kind of arcane information that nobody strictly needs to know, but which is a pleasure to learn nonetheless. Nick Duerden, Independent n n n n `Particularly good ... Forsyth takes words and draws us into their, and our, murky history William Leith, Evening Standard n n n n The Etymologicon is an occasionally ribald, frequently witty and unerringly erudite guided tour of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language. n n n n What is the actual connection between disgruntled and gruntled? What links church organs to organised crime, California to the Caliphate, or brackets to codpieces? n n n n Mark Forsyths riotous celebration of the idiosyncratic and sometimes absurd connections between words isa classic of its kind: a mine of fascinating information and a must-read for word-lovers everywhere. n n n n `Highly recommended. Spectator n