My favorite books as a child were encyclopedic reference like the Reader’s Digest ABCs of the Human Mind and ABCs of the Human Body, and dictionaries. Eloquent characters like C.D. Bales, modeled on Cyrano de Bergerac, in Roxanne who read encyclopedias for entertainment were heroes to me. This is why I was first drawn to The Grand Panjandrum and 2,699 Other Rare, Useful, and Delightful Words and Expressions by J.N. Hook.

Julius Nicholas Hook (1913-2005) was author of around 36 books according to Librarything. He was professor of English at the University of Illinois (Freeport Journal-Standard, 1958), from which he earned a BA, MA, and PhD. He also taught at Forrest Township High School, University of Wisconsin, Columbia University and more. He also directed “Project English” when budget increases were sent to fund education during the space race (Hook, 1977).

In addition to his books, Hook wrote commentary on the state and calling of teaching English. Perhaps because I was an English Lit major, or perhaps because its that time, his elevating English curriculum as a cure for many societal ills impressed me.

“How many people, whether students or adults, do much thinking, exploring, imagining, creating? Too Few, as election results often show, can recognize half-truths or can judge other people reasonably well; too many mistake surface sheen for substance.”…”Especially because literature reveals so many human truths, we have more inherent principle-teaching material than does, say, a teacher of mathematics or a beginning course in foreign language. We can contribute greatly to broadening the tiny circles that hem in too many people.” –Hook, 1997

I have happily reacquired The Grand Panjandrum, now out of print but not unattainable. Unlike other curated dictionaries and lexicons, Hook introduces the vocabulary in story first, relating and using the words in question as an illustration of how useful they can be. It is an incredibly engaging tactic. No wonder I remembered it so fondly.

References

• Freeport Journal-Standard. Tue, Aug 12, 1958. Page 12
• Hook, J. N. (1977). The Profession in Perspective: My Love Song. The English Journal, 66(7), 14–17. https://doi.org/10.2307/814357
• Hook, J. N. (1997). One Person’s Opinion: The Underlying Purpose in Teaching English. The English Journal, 86(2), 13–15. https://doi.org/10.2307/819665