In the chaos of contemporary politics, it is the betrayal of words, and then of people through these injured words, that particularly weighs on me. Do people who lie so readily, who misuse and abuse words to advance their personal power, who aim to obfuscate using words that were entrusted with complex and hopeful concepts... do they not appreciate the beauty of language at all?
Today I read a review of a book, supposedly for children, that presents the most beautiful love letter to words themselves. I felt joy that, yes, many people continue to find words themselves beautiful and mystical and worthy of deep attention.
While I gather my thoughts to continue the Smart series, I want to reproduce that book review in toto. I do hope the author, Maria Popova of The Marginalian, understands my need to do so. And if you enjoy this review, consider subscribing to her wonderful blog; it's full of interesting and beautiful books described through careful, thoughtful and gentle words.
Below is the full text taken from https://www.themarginalian.org/2025/02/04/the-wordy-book-julie-paschkis/
