Over 1,000 barbed and brilliant definitions by "the American Swift."

H. L. Mencken called these "some of the most gorgeous witticisms in the English language."

* * * *

I first acquired this book about five years ago, after reading Bierce's fictional works. I could not put it down. You don't read this book sequentially, but rather it is a book to leaf through, stopping where you find a word that interests you. With the format of a dictionary, Bierce sets up the look and feel of the official word, which is what we expect from a dictionary. Then, reading the definitions, you at first think, "Bierce is being a wise guy." But after a few more definitions, you realize that Bierce is actually delivering a concise treatise on Western Culture by giving you a shot-by-shot commentary, using as his basis the essential element of any society -- its language. Birece may not have realized it when he wrote the book, but The Devil's Dictionary aligns with some 21st-century literary experimentations with concise presentation, irony, and non-linear exploration. Even reading it non-linearly, however, you soon find you've read every entry in the book. Then, of course, you'll want to start again...

My favorites are the definitions pertaining to religion.

* * * *

Beginning in 1881 and continuing to 1906, Ambrose Bierce created a series of sardonic word definitions of his own. Many of these were collected and published as The Cynic's Word Book, which he later protested was "a name which the author had not the power to reject or happiness to approve." So in 1911, he pulled together a collection that was more to his own liking and called it The Devil's Dictionary. Most entries are amusing and some are great. Each reader will have his own favorites, some of mine are as follows:

ACCOUNTABILITY, n. The mother of caution.

ACQUAINTANCE, n. A person whom we know well enough to borrow from, but not well enough to lend to. A degree of friendship called slight when its object is poor or obscure, and intimate when he is rich or famous.

ALLIANCE, n. In international politics, the union of two thieves who have their hands so deeply inserted in each other's pockets that they cannot separately plunder a third.

APOLOGIZE, v.i. To lay the foundation for a future offence.

BAIT, n. A preparation that renders the hook more palatable. The best kind is beauty.

BEAUTY, n. The power by which a woman charms a lover and terrifies a husband.

BIGOT, n. One who is obstinately and zealously attached to an opinion that you do not entertain.

BIRTH, n. The first and direst of all disasters.

BORE, n. A person who talks when you wish him to listen.

BRIDE, n. A woman with a fine prospect of happiness behind her.

BRUTE, n. See HUSBAND.

CAT, n. A soft, indestructible automaton provided by nature to be kicked when things go wrong in the domestic circle.

CONSULT, v.i. To seek another's disapproval of a course already decided on.

COWARD, n. One who in a perilous emergency thinks with his legs.

CYNIC, n. A blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not as they ought to be. Hence the custom among the Scythians of plucking out a cynic's eyes to improve his vision.

DAY, n. A period of twenty-four hours, mostly misspent.

By all means, read it and pick out your own; you're sure to find a few that tickle your fancy.