The Etymologicon: a Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language; Library Edition Unabridged edition

The Etymologicon springs from Mark Forsyth's Inky Fool blog on the strange connections between words. It's an occasionally ribald, frequently witty and unerringly erudite guided tour of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language, taking in monks and monkeys, film buffs and buffaloes, and explaining precisely what the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.

The Etymologicon is a brilliant map of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language. There s always a connection. Sometimes, it s obvious: an actor s role was once written on a roll of parchment, and cappuccinos are the same colour as the robes of a Capuchin monk.