Chloe Rhodes: 4 books

An amusing and scholarly look at the fascinating stories behind old-fashioned legends and superstition This collection investigates the origins of history's most intriguing old-fashioned superstitions, many of which people still find themselves abiding by today. Hundreds of the beliefs passed...

English as we know it today is enriched with many borrowings and influences from other languages. Aficionado, chutzpah, pro bono, hoi polloi, ketchup, nous, zeitgeist - we use these foreign words every day without thinking of their origins, but what do they actually mean? And just how and why did...

Many of the popular, often prophetic, phrases that we use on a day-to-day basis have their roots in traditional folklore. For example: 'One swallow doesn't make a summer'; 'March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb'; 'One for sorrow, two for joy'. Such common idioms are familiar to most people,...

A beautifully packaged, highly enjoyable collection that showcases the most unusual and interesting collective nouns in the English language—from the author of A Certain "Je Ne Sois Quoi"   Why are geese in a gaggle? Are crows really murderous? And what makes lions so proud?...