Bartlett's Roget's Thesaurus
When is a thesaurus more than a thesaurus? When it isBartlett's Roget's Thesaurus. As well as providing synonyms like a standard thesaurus, this work has the added value of the creative combination of both Bartlett's and Roget's traditions plus some features of an almanac. Roget devised a conceptual (as opposed to alphabetical) thesaurus. The imagery of Bartlett's quotations adds breadth and depth to some categories here, and the 100 almanaclike lists of facts, interspersed in the body, supplement the synonyms. The introductory portion of the book includes an explanation of and rationale for this unique approach to thesaurus preparation. It is a North American work with emphasis on contemporary idiom and usage. There are two category lists, one grouped by concept and the other alphabetical, plus a directory of sidebar lists and a list of abbreviations on the contents page.For each category in the thesaurus, there are selections of synonyms for each appropriate part of speech. The general arrangement of the thesaurus can be visualized from the following example. The concept ofSpatial Relationshas 61 categories including space, location, cities, rivers, absence, expansion, etc. Category569 Mountains and Hillsstarts with a quote by John Ruskin. It has nouns, adjectives, and verbs that describe things hilly or mountainous. There are cross-references to such related categories asGeologyandHeight. There is also a list ofNotable Mountains, Mountain Ranges and Hills. The lists are a form of ready reference. The one associated with category299 Loveis ofFamous Lovers of Fact and Fiction. In the lengthy and very detailed index, each word, phrase, foreign expression, and idiom in the thesaurus is found with an associated number for category and/or keyword and paragraph.This is a great book (great 445.14)--great in contents (plentiful 97.4), great in size (heavy 538.9), great value for the money (important 799.7), and great fun to use (wonderful! 294.20). Highly recommended to all libraries and wordsmiths.