What is the difference between a briolette-cut diamond and a pear-shaped one? Where are cuts of meat found on a cow? What comprises a horse’s hoof? All of these questions and so many more can be answered in this newly updated visual dictionary. Approximately 25,000 terms are divided up into color-coordinated sections, with 8,000 full-color illustrations. An index in the back helps to locate information, since the entries are not in alphabetical order. A great addition to a reference section, this book will find patrons and librarians alike using it for quick, colorful, and interesting reference. — Erin Linsenmeyer, Booklist
Not since Saussure have signifier and signified been so happily in cahoots. Adding to the 2006 edition "more than 2,000 new and updated illustrations," the latest iteration of Merriam-Webster's Visual Dictionary is a wonder to behold. Divided into 18 "themes" including astronomy, clothing, society, earth, and animals this reference volume offers crisp, clear illustrations for each of its entries (and component parts), enabling readers to envisage cutaways of detail-intensive things like jet engines, toilets, synagogues, and honeybees, as well as more abstract topics, such as painting techniques, museums, and musical notation. While spatial limitations dictate the guide be less than exhaustive (furniture gets just a handful of pages), Corbeil and company do a remarkable job in terms of breadth and editing, interweaving bar code readers and URLs, as well as a quick study of roofs and a litany of coffee makers all without overwhelming readers or leaving them feeling cheated. Visual learners, curious kids, and those new to English will likely get the most out of the book, but even the curmud geonliest know-it-all will be mesmerized by this engaging and informative work. — Publisher's Weekly
Produced under the direction of Jean-Claude Corbeil (editor, The Firefly Spanish/English Visual Dictionary), this update of the 2006 edition covers a range of unrelated topics (e.g., astronomy and clothing) that is impressively wide for a volume this size. Each broad topic is broken into subcategories; for instance, "Sports and Games" has, among others, sections on "Sports Facilities" and "Sports on Wheels." Full-color drawings and diagrams illustrate the subjects covered in each sub-category. Although users can find more images on more subjects by searching the Internet, this resource allows them to do the reverse—to browse images and thereby discover the name and use of an unknown object, such as an unfamiliar cooking or gardening tool—more easily than they could in an online image search. The depictions and definitions of pieces of modern technology are sure to become outdated relatively soon (a problem common to many reference works), but since the dictionary covers far more than technology, this is ultimately a miniscule problem. Another weakness derives from one of the dictionary's strengths: its compact size requires the print to be very small. However, the images, which are the book's focus, are large enough for most readers to see them comfortably. VERDICT The breadth of subjects covered here means that people of all ages, skills, and education levels will find this book useful. Ideal for public libraries.—Robert Mixner, Bartholomew Cty. P.L., Columbus, IN
