Afterliff: The New Dictionary of Things There Should Be Words For

The Meaning of Liff #3

by Jon Canter John Lloyd

What should we call 'something that looks like minced beef but isn't'? Minsk, of course! 'Luxuriant nostril hairs'? Utrillas! Three decades after Douglas Adams and QI creator John Lloyd compiled The Meaning of Liff, here is a new collection of more than 900 familiar things that have hitherto remained unnamed, an oversight now corrected by recycling the appellations of places near and far.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Comedy, Language

224 pages, Hardcover

First published August 13, 2013

Reviews

[[ J o ] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Without the Douglas Adams edge, but still as wholly witty and sublime as it was with him. What can I say about this? It is funny and educational and just downright silly, but lovely, lovely, lovely. I enjoyed my free sticker, as well.




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[Steven Pemberton · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you liked The Meaning of Liff or The Deeper Meaning of Liff, you'll probably like this. If you don't get the central conceit, of recycling place names for everyday things that don't have words for them yet... read something else. I've discovered several useful new words already, and will make every effort to use them in conversation.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sole reason I bought this was because I saw John Lloyd in the Hay Festival bookshop and believed that he may have thought me a tight bastard if I went up to him without one of his books to sign. In the heat of the moment, I decided to purchase this and I'm glad I did. It provides you with a sense of what the human race still doesn't know despite how much it's developed. Sure, it's merely a coffee table book intended for a few giggles now-and-then but it's got a bit of substance.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A worthy successor to the original classic, brought up to date with some invaluable new words for texting- and Twitter-related activities and dilemmas. And congrats to Jon over there on his four contributions!

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It’s clever and fun. I was sad it ended so I came up with my own Liffs and submitted them in order to help there be another book.

[Loki · Rating 3 out of 5]

The third volume in the Liff series suffers a great deal from the lack of Douglas Adams, and also from throwing entries open to the general public, who are, on average, less funny or original than Adams. Too many entries in this book are crappy puns, outmoded gender stereotypes, or yet another word about some variation of there not being a world for a thing. This is not to say there are not a few gems in there, just that they're fewer and further between than in its predecessors. (The new format also tends to prevent the wonderful clusters of definitions that appeared in the earlier volumes, such as the words clustered around 'araglin'.)

[K.T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the Book of Liff and still use some of the words for everyday things. I've snorted over this second book and spent much time crying with laughter. My husband hates me reading it, especially because I want to keep interrupting him to share words. He hates it most when I read it while drinking coffee...

Heaps of examples to share but I love this one because I know the place. I also know a fair few public figures who could be called this...
Pont-y-pant (n)
Alpha male brought down by fraud or inappropriate sex.

[Sandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

as great as the other two

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bognor Regis (adj)
Something that is a great book for a toilet but doesn't make sense anywhere else.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought the original 'Meaning of Liff' not long after it came out. When I heard about the 'Deeper Meaning', I went out and hunted down a copy. When I heard about 'After Liff' - well, I never did hear about it. I just went into my local supermarket one day and there it was, reduced to half the cover price. So I bought two, and gave one as a Christmas present to a friend who had also not heard about this third volume.

I'm not going to quote any of the meanings in this review, since that is mocked quite clearly in Liff #1. But the concept of taking down the various combinations of letters from signposts and putting them to work filling in gaps in the language shows no sign of wearing out thirty years later. And the sense of achievement when you manage to use one in casual conversation never wears off.

Douglas Adams is of course sorely missed, but the general public has sought to fill the gap and John Lloyd and Jon Cantor have done a fine job curating the selection and I presume creating many of their own entries. This collection is possibly a little below the original Liff, but I'd rate it above the second volume - there were several here that actually made me snort, which happened only rarely with 'Deeper'. Personal taste will vary your own preferences, of course.

If you've enjoyed either of the other books, you'll want this. If you haven't tried them, then this is as good a place to start as any.

[Falko Rademacher · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The new dictionary of things there should be words for" is the third Liff book. A liff is a common object or experience for which no word yet exists, and it always must be the name of a place. Some nice examples from this book:

Hoff - Of actors, to indicate deep emotion by looking up and to the right

Crowle - The fold in a double chin

Butt of Lewis - Spin-off TV series not featuring the actor who was the reason you watched the original

Scunthorpe - To insert an expletive into a word for the sake of emphasis, as in 'Fan-bloody-tastic!'

Afterliff is a wonderful sequel, even without Douglas Adams. There were a lot of contributors who participated in this open source book, including yours truly. This is mine:

Philippines - ladyboys formerly known as Philip

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

Eworthy adj. Of a person: worth emailing but not worth phoning or meeting.

Ljubljana interj.What people say to the dentist on the way out.

------------

New ones on www.afterliff.com:

WIMBISH GREEN n. Any fictional town entirely populated by animals in Edwardian dress.

PRESTON CAPES n. One who casually performs feats of strength in front of his son’s girlfriend.

MELK n. Off milk.

GLASGOW n. Council note left on bin criticising contents.

---------------

Now to find The Yorkshire Meaning of Liff!

[Astrid Terese · Rating 4 out of 5]

The deeper meaning of Liff ble utgitt i 1992, den er skrevet av de samme to The deaper meaning of Liff-forfatterne, er på størrelse med en vanlig pocketbok og inneholder både enda flere ord og forklaringer i tillegg til tegninger av Bert Kitchen. På fremsiden finner du en tegning av;

GLENWHILLY (n.)
(Scots) A small tartan pouch worn beneath the kilt during the thistle-harvest.
Hele min omtale finner du på bloggen min Betraktninger

[Dan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was delighted to discover that this was every bit as funny, and far funnier in many, than its predecessors. There are so many great definitions that it would be unfair and futile to list some, which can't be a bad sign.

This kind of book is never going to reach the dizzy heights of a five star classic but that's a defect in the form of the book not its execution. I'm sure I'll be returning to this and resisting the urge to take it in a car journey to foist my sense of humour in the family.

[David Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

A constant delight. Maybe not quite as consistently funny as the original but still contains enough new words and phrases that we never knew we needed e.g. Scurdie Ness n. Other people's rubbish on a cafe table you have to clear away before you can sit down, and Murroes pl. n. The tramlines made by dragging a fork across mashed potato.

[David Bell]

Dangerously funny. I read recently that people very rarely laugh unless there's someone else around. This is bollox, as I found myself hooting with laughter every page. eg:'FINGAL'S CAVE n. The inevitable result of cheap lavatory paper.' Blisteringly funny and so full of insights about the human condition on a mundane level it's a must read for, well, everyone.

[Claire Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely chuffing hilarious. I remember sitting with my brother one Christmas Day when we were kids just endlessly reading entries to each other from the original book, laughing until it hurt. This one's no different. Genius :-)

[D.A. Fellows · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 stars. "Mostly harmless" bit of nonsense, succeeding the first two instalments co-written by Douglas Adams. Some were quite funny, others went over my head, but overall the list got repetitive quickly and I continued just to get it over with rather than for fun.

[Phil Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still very funny but somehow lacking the magic ingredient that I suspect was Douglas Adams.

[Alun Salt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good parts, but maybe not quite so many as The Meaning of Liff.

[Margret Dorothea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do love a book that makes me giggle at every turn of a page. Obviously need to get myself the other Liff books. Good ol'fashioned nonsense.

[Helen Pickavance · Rating 4 out of 5]

R. I. P. DNA. Shame he's gone but lovely of John Lloyd to carry on with the tradition of using place names as words for those this in life that should have them. Funny, as always.

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Made me laugh quite a lot several times, and not at my own four contributions, either. I need some more words to pad this review out, so here they are.

[Ness Gillies · Rating 5 out of 5]

I might actually use these words. I wanted to say the pope wore a yamaka, now I know better.

[Steve Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fine continuation to the silly dictionary that now includes my home town. Raised a few serious belly laughs

[Mugren Ohaly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as funny as the original