Dictionary Of Obscure Sorrows - John Koenig

Language & Reference

Rating: 8.5/10

“I read the dictionary. I thought it was a poem about everything.” Steven Wright

Do you ever struggle to find that word that perfectly fits what you are feeling only to find yourself unable to express it?

Well, whatever half-baked, unfinished, yet to be articulated feeling you have tumbling around in your brain, this book will find a way to name it. Every nook and cranny of this is a joy to read.

This book is a compendium of new words for emotions. Its mission is to shine a light on the fundamental strangeness of being a person in the world today. All the aches, demons, vibes, joys and urges that are spinning around in the background of our everyday life.

Just a few of the new words to be found:

Licotic: anxious excitement to introduce a friend to something you think is amazing, an album, a TV show, a book. An experience that leaves you staring at them in anticipation as you await their inevitable rush of awe. Which of course, never comes.

Kionophobia: the realization that while you are in the moment, everything seems epic, but when you look back over your story, it’s diminished, just ordinary.

Proluctance: the paradoxical urge to avoid doing something you’ve been looking forward to, perpetually waiting for the right state of mind to savior the moment.

Ioia: the wish that you could see statistics overlaid on every person you encounter, their metadata! The geek in me longs for this wish to come true!

Anemoia: A pang of nostalgia for an era you never lived through.

Footnote: The author owns up to the fact that these words are all made up. But so are all words aren’t they? That’s their particular magic. Etymology is a fascinating rabbit hole to lose yourself in!

Book Pairing(s): Dictionary Of Fine Distinctions by Eli Burnstein, Other-Wordly by Yee-Lum Make, Lost Words by Joe Gillard