RULE BRITANNIA!

Whether you are a fan of the silliness of Monty Python, a discerning afficionado of all things related to tea, or somewhat obsessed with the British Royal Family, anyone who can relate to the English will enjoy The Anglo Files: A Field Guide to the British by Sarah Lyall (Norton & Company, August 2008).

Sarah Lyall, a native of New York City, moved to London in the early 1990s, following her career as a journalist. She met and eventually married a Briton and has remained in England for the better part of fifteen years. The Anglo Files relates her personal experiences and observations as to how the British live and how very different they are from Americans.

At some points I laughed out loud: she describes the British tendency to incessantly apologize for seemingly everything, especially in instances where such sentiments are completely unnecessary. Lyall realized she had succumbed to this practice herself when she fell against a wall in the subway (or "tube", as Brits call them) and involuntarily mumbled "Sorry". A solitary woman, several feet away, murmured a "Sorry" of her own--in commiseration with the author's own expression of regret.

Hilarious!

Many facets of quotidian British existence are explored: the usually-poor weather conditions, the sad state of (most) English teeth, the bawdy and impolitic nature of how the Houses of Parliament conduct legsilative sessions (one U.K. native remarked to the author that the proceedings of the American Congress are so somnolent in comparison that she fell asleep on a visit there), and the relentless sense of modesty so many Brits express (even in the face of great accomplishment) are but a few. Lyall shares her insights with wry humor, gently poking fun of some mannerisms while exploring her complete astonishment at others (for example, why the trains in England are almost never on time--although the rail service does provide exhaustive apologies for when inconveniences arise).

The Anglo Files provides an excellent first-person, outsider's account of all the delightful idiosyncracies, charms, and bafflements that comprise the English people. Rule, Britannia!

ONE VOCABULARIAN'S PURSUIT

Ammon Shea of New York City has accomplished a feat I find as herculean as I do mystifying: he has read the entire print version of the Oxford English Dictionary. To the reader who may not know of this behemoth reference work, we are not discussing even a run-of-the-mill, six-inch-thick unabridged tome. The Oxford English Dictionary covers over twenty volumes and spans over 21,000 pages.

Shea is a quintessential vocabularian, a noun defined on page 194 of his book as "one who pays too much attention to words"--the title of his journey through the English language's flagship dictionary is Reading the OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages (Penguin, July 2008).

As soon as this title was brought to the library's main floor from the technical services department, I was keen on learning all about the author's journey. From the outset, Shea showers a word-enthusiast with the varied riches the OED offers: the introduction is labeled "Exordium", one of thousands of new terms the author collected during his perusal. Every chapter commences with a brief description of his reading adventure: apparently his eyesight all but disintegrated as he relentlessly absorbed the OED's rather merciless, small print. He also details the library basement where he spent most of his reading time, replete with visiting mice and occasionally-irksome undergraduate students (I was secretly empathetic as Shea described his inward battle to refrain from shushing them soundly).

But the crux of each chapter is a list of words starting with each letter of the alphabet which the author found noteworthy. Shea often comments on the astonishing array of words in the English language that exist for specific objects, conditions, sentiments, etc., which are virtually unknown for whatever reason.

I would be remiss not to share at least a few such entries which I found truly wonderful:

1) acnestis: the point of the lower back on an animal which cannot be scratched with the limbs (everyone's suffered through the cruelty of an itchy acnestis, but who knew the word to describe it?)

2) epizeuxis: the vehement repetition of a word (i.e., "No no no no NO!": the grammarian in me nearly swooned with joy, as I'd never known there is a term for such a construct)

3) materteral: pertaining to an aunt; aunt-like (my reaction to this word was neatly mirrored by the author's own; the word avuncular, meaning like an uncle, is widely known; why did the adjective for aunt fall into oblivion? If there's one word I learned from this book that I will be certain to use in the future, it's materteral)

4) opsigamy: marriage occurring late in life (!)

5) sialoquent: describing one who spits while speaking (honestly, we've all been subjected to this horrible practice--the next time I encounter it, I shall employ this deliciously obscure adjective to request the speaker to cease and desist)

I was very happy when I was able to recognize at least two entries before reading their definitions (hamartia and pandiculation)--others I tried hazarding a guess by looking at their roots before reading the descriptions (with very limited success).

Any lover of the English language will be caught up in the lexicographical exploits Mr. Shea details in this amazing little book, and certainly come away with more than one new word to embellish even the most advanced of vocabularies.

PARKER POSEY'S LANGUAGE LESSON

Broken English is a film detailing the story of neurotic, lonely Nora Wilder, a late-30-something New Yorker whose pursuit of true love has met with consistent failure and devastation. A Magnolia Pictures project whose DVD was released on December 31, 2007, Broken English landed the Jury Award at the 2007 Philadelphia Film Festival. It was also nominated at both the Sundance Film Festival (for the Grand Jury Prize) as well as the Independent Spirit Awards of 2007

WARNING: SPOILERS LURK WITHIN, SO DO NOT READ IF YOU WANT TO BE *SURPRISED*.

The inimitable Parker Posey, the "Queen of the Indies" (as she is best known for working on off-the-beaten-track projects), strikes a distinctly authentic chord as Nora, who works at a stylish boutique hotel as a "guest coordinator": her role is to ensure that guests have every need completely met by the establishment. Her best friend, Audrey Andrews (Drea de Matteo), is feted at an anniversary party held to celebrate her fifth year of marriage to Mark (Tim Guinee). Nora, who had originally introduced the couple, is accosted by her mother, Vivien (played to insidiously-controlling perfection by Gena Rowlands, the real-life mother of the film's writer and director, Zoe Cassavetes), halfway through the party. "Why is it you've let all the good ones slip away?", Viv stage whispers, anxiously peering about at the guests for a possible match for her solitary offspring.

Nora meets the self-centered actor, Nick Gable (here, an unlikely-looking, mohawked Justin Theroux), as he registers at the hotel. Their brief involvement is not blessed with endurance. She is then set up on a blind date (by her mother, no less) with Charlie Ross (Josh Hamilton), who is only very recently divorced from a clingy wife. It is not successful. Nearing desperation, Nora accepts an invitation to a party thrown by her co-worker, Glen (Michael Panes). The festivities find her drinking heavily and chain-smoking while wallowing in self-pity. She steps onto the elevator, stating her good-byes, when Glen introduces her to his slightly goofy, sincerely charming friend Julien (Melvil Poupaud). Jules is Parisian and knows Glen from when he was living with his family in France on a student-exchange program.

A weekend romance blooms between Nora and Julien--almost against Nora's will. Feeling burdened by her rounds of courtship failure, she is loathe to submit to his wiles. In the end she surrenders to them and delights in his company--amid suffering through anxiety attacks (for which she has a prescription) and wondering at what their future will hold.

Julien springs an unhealthy surprise in telling Nora he must soon return to France because his guest visa is going to expire. He asks her to join him, but Nora relates a litany of reasons why she cannot uproot her life on the spur of the moment for him; Julien makes his egress. She descends into a maelstrom of self-destruction, obliterating her career at the hotel and wandering about in a blind funk. Audrey convinces Nora to join her on a business excursion to Paris; Nora excitedly decides to look for Julien while she is there.

Unfortunately, she misplaces the scrap of paper on which she'd written his cell phone number. Nora bravely decides to remain in France when Audrey departs for America. At the eleventh hour, she randomly encounters Julien on a subway. "You know you will miss your plane?", he asks gently at the sophisticated cafe into which he leads her in the film's final moments. Blind with grateful tears, the lovelorn Nora Wilder nods, realizing she has finally discovered true love with her adorably offbeat Frenchman.

I've long adored the quirky, fabulous Ms. Posey. Her Broken English was 96 minutes of mellifluous music to my ears.