The Meaning of Liff by Douglas Adams
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Oh man I remember this book… it really gave me a load of great laughs!
I have to admit right off that I’ve always been a HUGE fan of the style and wit of Douglas Adams from the very first chapter I ever read of his famous “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy”.
I had finished the series and even the Dirk Gently stories, but then one day in the book store came across this… thing… this weird little book filled with the most bizarre stuff I’ve read in a while!
The only book this is comparable to in any way really is of course the dictionary, which in the words of the great E. Blackadder is, “…the most pointless book since How To Learn French was translated into French.”
The Meaning of Liff on the other hand is a rip-roaring and riotous read that does that I think every single one of us would love to do – give words to things other then just the same-old blah-blah mundanities, bring meaning to the things that truly need it! For example:
Alcoy (adj.): Wanting to be bullied into having another drink.
Mugeary (n.): (Medical) The substance from which the unpleasant little yellow globules in the corners of a sleepy person’s eyes are made.
Sneem (n.): Particular kind of frozen smile bestowed on a small child by a parent in mixed company when question, ‘Mummy, what’s this?’ appear to require the answer, ‘Er… it’s a rubber johnny, darling.’
Willimantic (adj.): Of a person whose heart is in the wrong place (i.e. between their legs).
There’s also the ‘Glenwhilly’ as pictured above, about a protector you wear when picking thistles in a kilt. Frikkin love it!
But all jokes aside – this is another excellent example of the creativity and humour that was such a defining feature and part of everything that Adams did and that made him a global favourite writer. Highly recommended for any and all fans of his work and sense of humour – and also the appetite for something a little different (because believe me, it is!).
And for anyone that was not happy with my choice of descriptions for the dictionary, allow me to retort: “Oh, I’m sorry, sir. I’m anispeptic, frasmotic, even compunctuous to have caused you such pericombobulation.”
Cheers and good day folks, till next time!
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One Happy Monk's Reviews 
I am back. I mean kinda. Too much happening on my personal front. Sigh!
Glad to have you back! Hope that while voluminous/overwhelming, the personal front is largely storm-free.
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