"I Didn't Know That" Vol. 2

by Karlen Evins

A sequel to the first popular "I Didn't Know That" book, Volume II covers such expressions as: Dingbat, Flash in the Pan, Peanut Gallery, Kit and Caboodle, The Whole Shebang, and many more. An inquisitive look at how some of our more colorful words and phrases came to be and why we still use them today.

Genres: Nonfiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was not as happy with this one as I was with Fabulous Fallacies which gives more depth to their topics. It is a nice dip in book but I had to take it with a grain of salt. When they talked about theater stages and why they were raked or graded to be on a slant the reason given was BS. Any theater student in college can tell you it is because the audience was usually on a flat surface so they slanted the stage to be able to give the audience a better view. Hence, upstage and downstage terms because the slant was up and down in relation to the audience. Some ressons they gave for terms also seemed like they were really stretching it to make that idea fit to the term they were trying to give the origin of.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 2 out of 5]

This sequel is listed incorrectly here. It is not an editions of this book: "I Didn't Know That" Or, Why We Say the Things We Say (ISBN 0963547402). It has its own ISBN: 0963547410 (also its ASIN) and is volume II with completely different content from Vol. 1. That being said, the approach is the same and wore thin after reading the earlier volume: The research feel more thin and I think some would not hold up. It is more cutesy than I want my etymology to be. This edition is apparently different from the one advertisted in the author's store as some of the content listed there is not here.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and easy read of the etymology of interesting words and phrases. Arranged alphabetically, each history fits on a single page of this compact volume.

[Bill Holmes · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I Didn't Know That" is a very lightweight book about the origins of words and phrases in the English language. Each entry is discussed in a breezy paragraph (two per page). I've read enough about the topic to know that many entries are reasonably accurate, although some are just plain wrong--the origin of the phrase "the whole nine yards" is still hotly debated and essentially unresolved, but here it's treated as settled (the "nine yards" supposedly being the cubic contents of a cement truck). It's a fun read, and I enjoyed it for what it was, but take it with a grain of salt. It's a suitable book for your library in the smallest room in the house.

[Jia · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK banget buat penerjemah. Disusun alfabetis, berisi ungkapan dalam bahasa Inggris dan sejarahnya.
Misalnya, singkatan O.K.
The initials O.K. refer to a certain political organization formed in support of presidential candidate Martin van Buren, when he was running for reelection in 1840. The member of supporting Van Buren formed "the democratic O.K. Club," with O.K. standing for Old Kinderhook, New York, a nickname given Van Buren that was taken from his hometown of Kinderhook, located in the Hudson Valley. As O.K. become the catchphrase of the day, its meaning soon came to known as "all right". and it holds that same association today.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Many of the entries are OK, but these tend to be the ones that are intuitive anyway. Several entries are just plain wrong, and ten minutes of research would have prevented the propagation of misinformation. Her writing is also sloppy - one gets the sense that she just writes what she would have said aloud.

[Sabine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just a fun little book with quick easy to read passages on the origin of different sayings. As the name implies, I didn't know that about many of the things. It was easy to read, put together in a very nice format. Great fro a coffee table, office, car, or anywhere you just need something to read, but don't want to get into a whole book.

[Charity · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is very lightweight. Unfortunately, most of what I read in this book seems to have evaporated. I can't remember hardly any of the phrases or their origins now. It is fun to read if you have someone there to share the trivia knowledge with. Plus, this way you might actually remember some of it.

[Dayat · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think Evins have made a mistake in the word origin of 'Amuck' that have gave a wrong impression of Malay as an uncultured and uncivilized tribe when the British arrived in Malaya.

"I didnt know that" indeed.

[Melisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of the sayings are very southern, and the book doesn't always tell you what they mean today. So, if you don't use the sayings, you might only find out the history of the word and not how it is used today.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always interested in how words, terms, and phrases came to be. I'm a word nerd.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly entertaining, interesting and educational! I would recommend this to anyone!