Grant Barrett's new book--described in St. Louis Post-Dispatch

[Cohen, Gerald Leonard]

Today's (8/23/2006) St. Louis Post-Dispatch (p. E3/2-3) says:
'The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English" (McGraw Hill) tries to fill that gap.

       'This "Crunk Omnibus for Thrillionaires and Bampots for the Ecozoic Age" [subtitle] --- that is, "good collection for wealthy thrill-seekers and fools for a future age when humans live in harmony with nature" --- contains more than 750 words that have become part of the English language but have not yet been accepted by standard dictionaries.

       'Grant Barrett has compiled his paperback volume alphabetically, as one might expect, and supplies each word's part of speech, definition, origin, and dated citations of its uses in print and on the Internet.

        'Included are several words coined for the Iraq war, including "hillbilly armor" (improvised protection for personnel and vehicles), "ali baba" (an Iraqi term for the looters who sprang into action after Saddam Hussein's government was toppled along with his statue), and "angel" (a soldier killed in action).'

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     Gerald Cohen

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