The Professor and the Madman

By: Simon Winchester

Narrated by: Simon Winchester

Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

Hidden within the rituals of the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary is a fascinating mystery. Professor James Murray was the distinguished editor of the OED project. Dr. William Chester Minor, an American surgeon who had served in the Civil War, was one of the most prolific contributors to the dictionary, sending thousands of neat, hand-written quotations from his home. After numerous refusals from Minor to visit his home in Oxford, Murray set out to find him. It was then that Murray would finally learn the truth about Minor - that, in addition to being a masterly wordsmith, he was also an insane murderer locked up in Broadmoor, England's harshest asylum for criminal lunatics. The Professor and the Madman is the unforgettable story of the madness and genius that contributed to one of the greatest literary achievements in the history of English letters.

©1998 Simon Winchester (P)1999 HarperCollins Publishers Inc., All Rights Reserved, Harper Audio, A Division of HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"The linguistic detective story of the decade." (New York Times Magazine)

Amazing

A fascinating story of two great protagonists who played a decisive role in one of the most ambitious projects since the invention of printing.

Understand Insanity and How To Write A Dictionary

The Professor and the Madman, written and verbalized by Simon Winchester. I read the story some around 2003 and enjoyed it marvelously. I just thought I would do it again, so hello Audible. The book is poetic although written in prose. There is, of course, this unique story of a mentally ill murderer becoming a grade-A number one contributor to the 74-year effort to write the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). Rather, more about that later, but my joy came from learning about the uniqueness of the OED and how its completion process makes it even today a premier dictionary or written compilation of our English language.

Don’t get me wrong, the tale of the strange circumstance of the madman is entertaining. There are hints here that his madness is PTD, acquired during his service as a surgeon during the Civil War Wilderness battle, the first encounter between the armies of Grant versus Lee and the bloody loss of 5000 soldiers. Was the madness causational? There was also a back story that the madman’s evangelistic parents embedded too muck self- guilt in this nympho-istic psychologically weak man. There are hints but not substance. I must be a bore as opposed to all that psychiatry; I found the real jewel in the story to be the understanding of the importance of the OED. Whichever aspect of the book you prefer you cannot help but thrill during the read or listen. One issue. The story is more of a short story than a major novel. In an effort to fill the pages, the author adds a lot of unnecessary extras. No concern though. Still worth the one credit. Well worth the one credit.

Fascinating history of Oxford dictionary

Very interesting history of the Oxford English Dictionary. The title led me to believe it would read more like a mystery novel which it definitely is not. The story revolves around the genesis of the OED and is very well written albeit the title is slightly misleading. Fun to listen to.

Fascinating read

This was selected for a book club read. As an unabashed Anglophile and lover of words, this book was right up my alley. Add to that, I'm a case worker for mentally ill and homeless individuals - so the piece about dealing with "lunacy" in the late 1800s was fascinating to me. There were a few twists to the story that had me shocked and laughing at various times. Even the way the British accent sounds stuffy and judgmental in a lighthearted way is amusing to me, a twanging Texan.

I gave it a 4-star review overall because, while it definitely appealed to me, I can see why it would be tedious to others. There is a long discussion about the debate over the definition of protagonist and whether a story can have two protagonists that even I felt cross-eyed at contemplating. While absolutely necessary, I can also see where some might have jumped ship with the discussions on how the great dictionary was organized.

Most of the people in my book club ended up listening to the audiobook instead of reading it, and I believe that had made the experience all the more enjoyable for me.

Extremely enlightening view about the Dictionary.

Very historically entertaining accounts of how the Oxford-English Dictionary came to be. LOVED IT! Anyone who likes history could be a fan of this book. It spans from early 1800's England to officers in the Civil War between the states. I would suggest not looking up the men in this book as it would spoil some of the fun of the narrative.

Fascinating tale of the Anglo/American cooperation

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, for people who love words and their origins, as well as a fascinating story beautifully told. The reader was worthy of the writer.

What did you like best about this story?

It shed light on a subject I know little about

Which character – as performed by Simon Winchester – was your favorite?

All, he is a fantastic reader!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

too long

Any additional comments?

a delight

Dry in Parts, but an Interesting Story

If you could sum up The Professor and the Madman in three words, what would they be?

Dictionaries, Lunatics, History

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

That it was a true story.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. The chapters about the history of dictionaries are dry.

Any additional comments?

An interesting piece of history, though the author works petty hard to make the crime sound more lurid and interesting than it was. The book is about an hour shorter than advertised because the acknowledgement section is an hour long and deathly boring.

terrific listen

I really enjoyed this book. It being read by the author makes it all the better. A very compelling story!

Fascinating!

As a lifelong lover of words, their meanings, and their histories, I had no doubt that I would find this book extremely interesting. In spite of this though, I was surprised at just how fascinating this book turned out to be. Easily, one of my top five favorite books of all time.

Fascinating

The story of the two friends is one marvelous thing. The story of the Oxford English Dictionary is another. If you love words, I suspect you will love this.