A Glossary of Terms is a handy little book with a narrow audience. If you aren't in that audience, it may be a wait for second edition.
This book is a glossary of linguistic and rhetorical terms that a student of Greek or Latin may run across. The author, R. U. Smith, Jr., has done a bang-up job. He illustrates terms with some nice examples and clear text. Since he realizes that students may not have the strongest grasp on Latin, he uses plenty of English examples. If one is so inclined, the occasional Old English example pops up. Happily, his language is a little old-fashioned in spots, as is befitting to a book like this. An example on p. 8:
But.
The problem is that this book is really written for people who can sort through its organization. The book is not friendly to beginners. Dividing the terms up by grammar, rhetoric and prosody is good if you're somewhat familiar with where each term goes, but it really limits the audience of the book. Where do you look for enallage? Personally, I'd rather look under E, but this book wants you to first know it is a rhetorical term. This would have been completely forgivable had an index been provided.
So, if you're willing or able to deal with an advanced-user layout, get this book. It's a gem. Otherwise, beg the publisher to make a beginners' glossary out of it.
This book is a glossary of linguistic and rhetorical terms that a student of Greek or Latin may run across. The author, R. U. Smith, Jr., has done a bang-up job. He illustrates terms with some nice examples and clear text. Since he realizes that students may not have the strongest grasp on Latin, he uses plenty of English examples. If one is so inclined, the occasional Old English example pops up. Happily, his language is a little old-fashioned in spots, as is befitting to a book like this. An example on p. 8:
The body of this handbook, like Gaul, is divided into three parts…Or from p. 1:
All students of the classics, all classicists, are by necesity philologians (or philogogists)…Anyway, I like that aspect of it. It's fun. More importantly, Smith has selected a set of terms that is broad enough to be useful but not so broad as to be cumbersome. He then goes on to tie it all up with good cross references.
But.
The problem is that this book is really written for people who can sort through its organization. The book is not friendly to beginners. Dividing the terms up by grammar, rhetoric and prosody is good if you're somewhat familiar with where each term goes, but it really limits the audience of the book. Where do you look for enallage? Personally, I'd rather look under E, but this book wants you to first know it is a rhetorical term. This would have been completely forgivable had an index been provided.
So, if you're willing or able to deal with an advanced-user layout, get this book. It's a gem. Otherwise, beg the publisher to make a beginners' glossary out of it.
