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The Word Trove
In this book you meet ‘a word’ that has lost its meaning. On its fantastic journey through the world of language, it attempts to rediscover its meaning all on its own.
“There are thousands of paths for you to take. Recognising the path that gives you meaning is the greatest challenge of all.”
A magical tale about language – wonderful, poetic and profound!
"Saying the right words at the right time is like magic."
“There are thousands of paths for you to take. Recognising the path that gives you meaning is the greatest challenge of all.”
A magical tale about language – wonderful, poetic and profound!
"Saying the right words at the right time is like magic."
117 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 15, 2020
2 people are currently reading
474 people want to read
About the author
Elias Vorpahl
3 books14 followersAfter a year of voluntary social service in South Africa, Elias Vorpahl (b. 1985) studied Mathematics in New Zealand and Germany. He is a member of the author collective Prosathek.
"The Word Trove" is his first novel.
Connect with Elias here
➜ INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/Elias_Vorpahl
➜ FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/EliasVorpahl
➜ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/EliasVorpahl
"The Word Trove" is his first novel.
Connect with Elias here
➜ INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/Elias_Vorpahl
➜ FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/EliasVorpahl
➜ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/EliasVorpahl
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
May 8, 2021
This was such an unusual yet enchanting story, I am still trying to comprehend exactly what I have read.
The Word Trove tells the story of a young word which has lost it's meaning. We follow the word's journey through the world of language as it seeks to uncover who it is and what it means.
This book was so easy to read, I felt like I was flying through it. The word play was clever and definitely made me stop and think about the various uses of language and how it can be altered. The journey that the word takes reminded me a lot of some of my favourite childhood fairy tales. I almost felt like I was reading an old favourite book, revisiting a world I had already explored. The unusual characters drew me in, my particular favourite was Mad! I think my main complaint is that I want even more! I would love to explore more of this world with Elias Vorphal, but it has been left in the perfect way, with a fond farewell.
The illustrations weaved throughout this book were absolutely stunning. I can imagine they are even more striking and moving in the physical copy- I have a feeling I may need to pick up a copy just to keep on my bookshelf and treasure. I can imagine it could be a great read to share with children too, even if they don't fully grasp some of the clever language use.
I am so grateful to Netgalley, the publishers and author for allowing me to receive a copy of the ebook so I could give my personal thoughts.
The Word Trove tells the story of a young word which has lost it's meaning. We follow the word's journey through the world of language as it seeks to uncover who it is and what it means.
This book was so easy to read, I felt like I was flying through it. The word play was clever and definitely made me stop and think about the various uses of language and how it can be altered. The journey that the word takes reminded me a lot of some of my favourite childhood fairy tales. I almost felt like I was reading an old favourite book, revisiting a world I had already explored. The unusual characters drew me in, my particular favourite was Mad! I think my main complaint is that I want even more! I would love to explore more of this world with Elias Vorphal, but it has been left in the perfect way, with a fond farewell.
The illustrations weaved throughout this book were absolutely stunning. I can imagine they are even more striking and moving in the physical copy- I have a feeling I may need to pick up a copy just to keep on my bookshelf and treasure. I can imagine it could be a great read to share with children too, even if they don't fully grasp some of the clever language use.
I am so grateful to Netgalley, the publishers and author for allowing me to receive a copy of the ebook so I could give my personal thoughts.
August 29, 2021
This was a wonderful read for anyone who admires the written word and takes an interest in grammar! A word has lost its meaning and has to search for it, meeting other words along the way. This was both charming and original and I foresee myself several copies of this per year to gift to literary friends! Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.
October 2, 2022
3.5 stars!
REVIEW of The Word Trove can also be found on my blog
Wow, this was such a beautiful and whimsical book with humour that made me smile so much!!
The Word Trove follows a word who has forget her name and is on a quest to find and its meaning. That premise alone hooked me!
“Some stopped at the little stalls where jewellers sold silver tongues and golden silences, and confectioners peddled vox popcorn and sugar-coated truths.”
The best thing about The Word Trove would definitely be the writing… and The Word Trove is a translated work (German to English) so I am even more impressed. There are so many metaphors used as well as puns and wordplay which made me crack up. We have a city called “Langwich” where the “Linguistic Games” are held, with “buttered toast, syllable salve and verbal tea”. If you appreciate witty humour, then The Word Trove is definitely for you.
The Word Trove also explores many different aspects of language cleverly. I particularly enjoyed the metaphor for archaic words and will be adopting the word “wherefore” now… and the role of brackets was so ingenious!
"Personally, I like changing my suits eleven times a day, doing somersaults and making sure the hares don’t get too bored."
This book had a huge “The Journey” trope, in fact, it was the essence of the plot. At first, it felt like the word was simply wandering around aimlessly, however, after a while, I quickly began to appreciate the path she took, especially the other words she met along the way.
The personalities of the different words were intriguing to read about, and I love the references to classic folktales like Watership Down and Alice in the Wonderland. Mad was one of the most hilarious characters ever!
Another aspect of the Word Trove I enjoyed immensely would be that of stories. The Word Trove touches on the meaning of stories to words, how they help words be remembered and I absolutely treasured the moment where our little word got to experience a story for the first time. It was magical and reminded me how much I loved reading.
My only criticism is that this book felt way too short because there were so many other areas that could have been explored, plus the ending was a bit too abrupt.
Overall, The Word Trove was a short but beautiful read, a great reminder of how much words matter to us and a clever take on their life. I would definitely recommend this love letter to language!
a huge thank you to NetGalley and Iron Bird Publishing for the arc!
REVIEW of The Word Trove can also be found on my blog
Wow, this was such a beautiful and whimsical book with humour that made me smile so much!!
The Word Trove follows a word who has forget her name and is on a quest to find and its meaning. That premise alone hooked me!
“Some stopped at the little stalls where jewellers sold silver tongues and golden silences, and confectioners peddled vox popcorn and sugar-coated truths.”
The best thing about The Word Trove would definitely be the writing… and The Word Trove is a translated work (German to English) so I am even more impressed. There are so many metaphors used as well as puns and wordplay which made me crack up. We have a city called “Langwich” where the “Linguistic Games” are held, with “buttered toast, syllable salve and verbal tea”. If you appreciate witty humour, then The Word Trove is definitely for you.
The Word Trove also explores many different aspects of language cleverly. I particularly enjoyed the metaphor for archaic words and will be adopting the word “wherefore” now… and the role of brackets was so ingenious!
"Personally, I like changing my suits eleven times a day, doing somersaults and making sure the hares don’t get too bored."
This book had a huge “The Journey” trope, in fact, it was the essence of the plot. At first, it felt like the word was simply wandering around aimlessly, however, after a while, I quickly began to appreciate the path she took, especially the other words she met along the way.
The personalities of the different words were intriguing to read about, and I love the references to classic folktales like Watership Down and Alice in the Wonderland. Mad was one of the most hilarious characters ever!
Another aspect of the Word Trove I enjoyed immensely would be that of stories. The Word Trove touches on the meaning of stories to words, how they help words be remembered and I absolutely treasured the moment where our little word got to experience a story for the first time. It was magical and reminded me how much I loved reading.
My only criticism is that this book felt way too short because there were so many other areas that could have been explored, plus the ending was a bit too abrupt.
Overall, The Word Trove was a short but beautiful read, a great reminder of how much words matter to us and a clever take on their life. I would definitely recommend this love letter to language!
a huge thank you to NetGalley and Iron Bird Publishing for the arc!
November 29, 2020
Every so often an author has an idea and it is one so novel that you read the first few chapters and instantly start making lists of people you want to buy copies for. Imagine my delight when I saw that the book is due to be published here in the uk before Christmas!
This is a short, whimsical tale for anyone who loves a beautifully crafted story and for anyone who simply loves words. The ultimate fairy story with an edge of danger and darkness like the traditional European tales of old (no Disney princesses here thank goodness!) and also a mystery story. I spent the whole book trying to guess Words name but ultimately failed despite the author offering clues. At times I felt like a child again, not entirely sure of the literary landscape and of not being on level footing something the adult reader tends to lose as they spot formulas, tropes, tricks and plot devices in the books they read. I was glad The Mad was a character because I felt the same as I did when I first read Alice to myself many moons ago.
I have always loved using older words (I refuse to say outdated) hitherto-fore being a favourite and from now on I shall make sure The Wise old Wherefore is remembered, and written down by this human. Though now I feel a pang of guilt every time I use brackets and I can’t even let my head go to what happens when words are spoken aloud.
I was very glad to see at the end of the book a note from the translator and how they’d tackled the very tricky problem of not just translating something verbatim but keeping the sense of word play and grammatical detail as fun and creative as in the original German. If only my GCSE level German was sufficient for me to read the original too!
Read this book and buy it for the wordie in your life.
This is a short, whimsical tale for anyone who loves a beautifully crafted story and for anyone who simply loves words. The ultimate fairy story with an edge of danger and darkness like the traditional European tales of old (no Disney princesses here thank goodness!) and also a mystery story. I spent the whole book trying to guess Words name but ultimately failed despite the author offering clues. At times I felt like a child again, not entirely sure of the literary landscape and of not being on level footing something the adult reader tends to lose as they spot formulas, tropes, tricks and plot devices in the books they read. I was glad The Mad was a character because I felt the same as I did when I first read Alice to myself many moons ago.
I have always loved using older words (I refuse to say outdated) hitherto-fore being a favourite and from now on I shall make sure The Wise old Wherefore is remembered, and written down by this human. Though now I feel a pang of guilt every time I use brackets and I can’t even let my head go to what happens when words are spoken aloud.
I was very glad to see at the end of the book a note from the translator and how they’d tackled the very tricky problem of not just translating something verbatim but keeping the sense of word play and grammatical detail as fun and creative as in the original German. If only my GCSE level German was sufficient for me to read the original too!
Read this book and buy it for the wordie in your life.
January 7, 2021
I didn't really know what to expect from this very short book with a rather concise but intriguing blurb and a fascinatingly bookish cover. I'm pleased to say, I quite enjoyed it. There were times when I was left a bit muddled but for the majority of the novel it was an interesting adventure of a 'word'. This is a translated novel orginally published in German, but I think the translator has done a very good job of finding a way to keep the true essence and meaning of this story while changing up parts of the journey to match the flare of literature in the original.
The Word Trove is quite similar in a way to a story told by Lewis Carroll and contains an ode of sorts to the Mad Hatters Tea Party.
It's an imaginative fairy tale of a story full of excitement and light peril. I would definitely recommend this novella to fans of joyful and whimsical tales.
The Word Trove is quite similar in a way to a story told by Lewis Carroll and contains an ode of sorts to the Mad Hatters Tea Party.
It's an imaginative fairy tale of a story full of excitement and light peril. I would definitely recommend this novella to fans of joyful and whimsical tales.
November 30, 2020
First of all, a huge thank you to the Readers First and Elias for sending me a free copy of this book! I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as I did but I am so grateful that I got the chance to read it!
The Word Trove is a quick, beautiful and well written novel, written from the perspective of a word that has lost its meaning. It probably sounds weird but I promise it is truly magical! I really enjoyed following the word’s journey around and even though this book was out of my ‘comfort zone’ and different from what I usually read I felt overwhelmed reading it! It really left me with a feeling of warmth and I just love how if you just closely pay attention to the stories and parts of it you can see how these reflect real life and our world. I feel like this book should also be read by younger ages as I thought that different parts were a bit ‘childish’ for me (in a good way). I can’t give 5 stars to this book because as much as I loved it, the ending just came too quickly and I feel like the book could be way longer and many more ideas which would make great scenes could have been included. The writing style of this book was just so beautiful and it really intrigues the readers from the very beginning of the story! I would really love to see this book turned into an animation movie and I want it to get the recognition it deserves. Well done Elias, this is truly beautiful :)
The Word Trove is a quick, beautiful and well written novel, written from the perspective of a word that has lost its meaning. It probably sounds weird but I promise it is truly magical! I really enjoyed following the word’s journey around and even though this book was out of my ‘comfort zone’ and different from what I usually read I felt overwhelmed reading it! It really left me with a feeling of warmth and I just love how if you just closely pay attention to the stories and parts of it you can see how these reflect real life and our world. I feel like this book should also be read by younger ages as I thought that different parts were a bit ‘childish’ for me (in a good way). I can’t give 5 stars to this book because as much as I loved it, the ending just came too quickly and I feel like the book could be way longer and many more ideas which would make great scenes could have been included. The writing style of this book was just so beautiful and it really intrigues the readers from the very beginning of the story! I would really love to see this book turned into an animation movie and I want it to get the recognition it deserves. Well done Elias, this is truly beautiful :)
January 12, 2021
I know this book won't be to everyone's taste, but it made me so giddy. It takes me back to all of the wonderful high-brow literature I got to read as part of my Spanish minor.
Here is a quote from the book:
"You asked where you should go to find your meaning. One thing’s for certain: you can’t stay here." What an impactful truth! You can easily change it to: "So you want to grow. You want to change. You want to succeed. You can't stay here!" Move forward. Make progress.
So as far as the actual journey and the wordplay go, it's okay. What really makes this book great is the philosophical nature of the writing, as displayed in the quote above, but there are also a lot of moments in this book that give a taste of the great Jorge Luis Borges and short stories like The Secret Miracle. In the book, I experienced sensations not unlike those of Christopher Nolan's film, Inception, which has Borges-esque qualities as well. The metafiction was a lot of fun, but, truthfully, I think Vorpahl may have used the same trick one or two too many times.
Ultimately, the makeup of this book is more literary art than story, but it's just so much fun. To question. To theorize. You can tell the author had fun, too. The chapter in Babel was an exciting twist that I haven't personally experienced in published literature.
Three disclaimers:
1- I won this as a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review. Spoiler- I loved it.
2- While I still thoroughly enjoyed it in English, I wish I could read/understand the original German text. As good a job as the translator did, I can't help but think that there was some loss in translation. If they didn't tell me it was translated, I might not have that opinion, though. Hard to say.
3- I got the Kindle version, and I'm bummed I didn't get the physical book because according to the reviews, it's gorgeous.
Here is a quote from the book:
"You asked where you should go to find your meaning. One thing’s for certain: you can’t stay here." What an impactful truth! You can easily change it to: "So you want to grow. You want to change. You want to succeed. You can't stay here!" Move forward. Make progress.
So as far as the actual journey and the wordplay go, it's okay. What really makes this book great is the philosophical nature of the writing, as displayed in the quote above, but there are also a lot of moments in this book that give a taste of the great Jorge Luis Borges and short stories like The Secret Miracle. In the book, I experienced sensations not unlike those of Christopher Nolan's film, Inception, which has Borges-esque qualities as well. The metafiction was a lot of fun, but, truthfully, I think Vorpahl may have used the same trick one or two too many times.
Ultimately, the makeup of this book is more literary art than story, but it's just so much fun. To question. To theorize. You can tell the author had fun, too. The chapter in Babel was an exciting twist that I haven't personally experienced in published literature.
Three disclaimers:
1- I won this as a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review. Spoiler- I loved it.
2- While I still thoroughly enjoyed it in English, I wish I could read/understand the original German text. As good a job as the translator did, I can't help but think that there was some loss in translation. If they didn't tell me it was translated, I might not have that opinion, though. Hard to say.
3- I got the Kindle version, and I'm bummed I didn't get the physical book because according to the reviews, it's gorgeous.
December 14, 2020
A love letter to language
Thank you Readers First and Elias Vorpahl for my free copy of this book which I received after writing my first impression.
This is a beautiful little book-it feels lovely in the hand and has some gorgeous little illustrations throughout.
This is a tender, gentle story, a little love letter to language. It is a different concept for a book. It tells the story of words, words that are sentient and live lives as we do.
It really made me smile. One word in particular is spoken out loud by a human and forgets it’s own name. Every word embodies it’s own name and this little word adventures through it’s world to find out where it belongs, as without family and meaning you are nothing.
I enjoyed this book, it has joyful simple prose and clever use of language to describe a world of words.
Using descriptions of the body of a word - ‘the little letter on its right syllable had gone completely numb’
‘Deaf’- who uses servant words to enable him to speak
Terrifying ‘brackets’ that capture words and make them disappear without trace
All of these and so many more I found a clever, different way to engage me as a reader.
No, I will not say the words name, you will find out for yourself!
This book will sit quietly on my shelf and every so often, as the author says, I will leaf through it and return to a world which I have left behind.
A little afterword goes to the translator Romy Fursland who has done an amazing job with translating this book with all its complex nuances of language from the original German.
Thank you Readers First and Elias Vorpahl for my free copy of this book which I received after writing my first impression.
This is a beautiful little book-it feels lovely in the hand and has some gorgeous little illustrations throughout.
This is a tender, gentle story, a little love letter to language. It is a different concept for a book. It tells the story of words, words that are sentient and live lives as we do.
It really made me smile. One word in particular is spoken out loud by a human and forgets it’s own name. Every word embodies it’s own name and this little word adventures through it’s world to find out where it belongs, as without family and meaning you are nothing.
I enjoyed this book, it has joyful simple prose and clever use of language to describe a world of words.
Using descriptions of the body of a word - ‘the little letter on its right syllable had gone completely numb’
‘Deaf’- who uses servant words to enable him to speak
Terrifying ‘brackets’ that capture words and make them disappear without trace
All of these and so many more I found a clever, different way to engage me as a reader.
No, I will not say the words name, you will find out for yourself!
This book will sit quietly on my shelf and every so often, as the author says, I will leaf through it and return to a world which I have left behind.
A little afterword goes to the translator Romy Fursland who has done an amazing job with translating this book with all its complex nuances of language from the original German.
December 7, 2020
This was magical and unlike anything I have read before.
When I read the blurb I was intrigued enough to want to read it but it also gave nothing away.
Truly it's hard to describe this book with words which is kinda ironic as that's the whole premise of the story.
A brief outline is this is the tale of a word's journey, it has lost the meaning and essence of itself and undertakes a quest to find out who and what it's meaning is.
Along the way it meets some great characters, heard some wonderful tales itself and share beautiful witticisms, snippets of poetry and wise sayings and the meanings of things, words, overall just little concepts to make you think about words and analyse them a whole lot more.
For me as a reader words are pure art, magic and a doorway to other worlds but now after reading this I will imbue each word with its own little "character."
This reminds me and has elements of some of my all time favourite stories, the wanting to keep words alive reminds me of the same kind of concept of The land of forgotten beasts and the land of letters in The phantom tollbooth but at the same time it was totally different.
Just like the person who wrote the book blurb I'm finding it difficult to pin down and encapsulate the essence fully of this novel, it's really something someone would have to read for themselves BUT it would only probably be appreciated by those into wordplay, word games, whimsical stories and a love of words and reading in general.
When I read the blurb I was intrigued enough to want to read it but it also gave nothing away.
Truly it's hard to describe this book with words which is kinda ironic as that's the whole premise of the story.
A brief outline is this is the tale of a word's journey, it has lost the meaning and essence of itself and undertakes a quest to find out who and what it's meaning is.
Along the way it meets some great characters, heard some wonderful tales itself and share beautiful witticisms, snippets of poetry and wise sayings and the meanings of things, words, overall just little concepts to make you think about words and analyse them a whole lot more.
For me as a reader words are pure art, magic and a doorway to other worlds but now after reading this I will imbue each word with its own little "character."
This reminds me and has elements of some of my all time favourite stories, the wanting to keep words alive reminds me of the same kind of concept of The land of forgotten beasts and the land of letters in The phantom tollbooth but at the same time it was totally different.
Just like the person who wrote the book blurb I'm finding it difficult to pin down and encapsulate the essence fully of this novel, it's really something someone would have to read for themselves BUT it would only probably be appreciated by those into wordplay, word games, whimsical stories and a love of words and reading in general.
January 5, 2021
I loved the concept of this and the language used throughout.
It was very informative and an idea that I don’t think I’ve read before, meeting ‘a word’ that’s lost it’s ‘meaning’. How original! I had my reservations about this as it’s not normally a genre I go for but I really enjoyed it.
The various paths one word can take you down and the change in meaning if used in certain mannerisms etc.
I do think it could have been doing with being a little longer but other than that, I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from Elias!
It was very informative and an idea that I don’t think I’ve read before, meeting ‘a word’ that’s lost it’s ‘meaning’. How original! I had my reservations about this as it’s not normally a genre I go for but I really enjoyed it.
The various paths one word can take you down and the change in meaning if used in certain mannerisms etc.
I do think it could have been doing with being a little longer but other than that, I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from Elias!
December 12, 2020
An unusual world...
First off, this book as an object in its own right is beautiful and something rather special to hold. A small hardback with its own gold bookmark and stunning illustrations throughout, you can't help feel this is something a little bit different...
And you wouldn't be wrong, as this is like nothing I've read before. The story focuses on the word, who has forgotten what she is called and with it her meaning. It then turns into a bit of an adventure set within the world of language.
It's unique and at times rather beautiful in its poetic prose, but for me it was perhaps too imaginative and I probably like to understand the meaning of what I'm reading a bit more. I think it would perhaps need a second or third read through to fully grasp what was going on.
It says a lot that I still enjoyed this book for what it was, despite feeling a little confused at the end.
Thanks to Readers First for providing an ARC.
First off, this book as an object in its own right is beautiful and something rather special to hold. A small hardback with its own gold bookmark and stunning illustrations throughout, you can't help feel this is something a little bit different...
And you wouldn't be wrong, as this is like nothing I've read before. The story focuses on the word, who has forgotten what she is called and with it her meaning. It then turns into a bit of an adventure set within the world of language.
It's unique and at times rather beautiful in its poetic prose, but for me it was perhaps too imaginative and I probably like to understand the meaning of what I'm reading a bit more. I think it would perhaps need a second or third read through to fully grasp what was going on.
It says a lot that I still enjoyed this book for what it was, despite feeling a little confused at the end.
Thanks to Readers First for providing an ARC.
December 4, 2020
I received an advance copy of this via NetGalley. Thank you.
Wow. As a lifetime lover of words and word play, it was an honour to go on this adventure with a word, from her origin, being spoken (not a pleasant experience) and on her travels, meeting words, idioms, forgotten words, nonsense and danger.
There are echoes of Wonderland, Oz, Narnia, Disc-world, the Galaxy and The Phantom Tolbooth in this tale, as well as strong feelings of familiar traditional fairy tales.
There are several messages within this book. My main take away is the importance of the right words at the right time.
I would add that credit must be given to the translator. English is a complicated language as it is, let alone translating words and word play from German to get the right meaning.
Wow. As a lifetime lover of words and word play, it was an honour to go on this adventure with a word, from her origin, being spoken (not a pleasant experience) and on her travels, meeting words, idioms, forgotten words, nonsense and danger.
There are echoes of Wonderland, Oz, Narnia, Disc-world, the Galaxy and The Phantom Tolbooth in this tale, as well as strong feelings of familiar traditional fairy tales.
There are several messages within this book. My main take away is the importance of the right words at the right time.
I would add that credit must be given to the translator. English is a complicated language as it is, let alone translating words and word play from German to get the right meaning.
December 1, 2020
I was excited to read this book when it arrived because someone had recommended it to me, knowing that I'm a reader. When it arrived I was a little surprised by the size, its a smaller hardback but has a luxury feeling ribbon inside, not many books have this now, a built in bookmark which was a nice little extra detail here. The cover is lovely and bright and feels just as nice as it looks.
The storyline itself is an interesting one. The concept and the language used throughout are new to me and I loved it but I am unsure with how I feel about it. The end feels like it is a little unfinished and that there couldn't have been a little more. Made into a thicker book. Again the concept is so unique I enjoyed it thoroughly and I will end up recommending this to others who like reading and maybe I will be able to have a conversation with them about this book and feel like it has more meaning behind what I have read.
The storyline itself is an interesting one. The concept and the language used throughout are new to me and I loved it but I am unsure with how I feel about it. The end feels like it is a little unfinished and that there couldn't have been a little more. Made into a thicker book. Again the concept is so unique I enjoyed it thoroughly and I will end up recommending this to others who like reading and maybe I will be able to have a conversation with them about this book and feel like it has more meaning behind what I have read.
December 4, 2020
First the physical hardback of this book Is absolutely stunning , illustrations are beautiful and really do go along side the enjoyment of the story. The dust jacket and under neath is just beautiful and I love the fact the book has it's own bookmark.
Second I really enjoyed reading this story I have never read anything like it and I doubt I will again, beginning of the book u meet word and u spend the entire book going along with 'word' finding out its name because its lost its meaning because it was spoken out loud. I loved every single character and side character and I will forever be wanting to know if they are all okay especially certain 2 words.
This is definitely a love letter to language and every single words meaning and saying words at the right time and meaning them.
Thank you to readers first for my copy of this book I will forever love this book it's now deep in my heart
Second I really enjoyed reading this story I have never read anything like it and I doubt I will again, beginning of the book u meet word and u spend the entire book going along with 'word' finding out its name because its lost its meaning because it was spoken out loud. I loved every single character and side character and I will forever be wanting to know if they are all okay especially certain 2 words.
This is definitely a love letter to language and every single words meaning and saying words at the right time and meaning them.
Thank you to readers first for my copy of this book I will forever love this book it's now deep in my heart
December 2, 2020
The Word Trove is a stunning book which mixed fantasy and literacy in a beautifully captivating manner. It is not a long story and yet it feels completely immersive and really lifts the reader far from the realities of the daily grind and into a magical world. The idea of the Word and having it as a key character is really clever and quirky. The illustrations scattered throughout each chapter are gorgeous details which make this a book that I think I will keep now that I have read it rather than passing along to a friend. The cover is fabulous and takes a simple design and colour scheme to create a captivating and eye catching imagine which really makes it stand out yet the small, almost pocket book, size adds to its mystical appeal. This is a lovely book and one which will be well received as a gift and might make a lovely addition to a loved ones Christmas stocking
December 3, 2020
I was very happy to win an advance copy of The Word Trove and it's a truly wonderful book. The hardback edition is small but beautiful, with a woven ribbon bookmark and some lovely line drawing illustrations. The story itself is really quirky and imaginative, all the characters are actual words and the reader follows the journey of one word in particular on a quest to find it's forgotten name and meaning. The writing is charming and very inventive, it has a magical fairy tale quality and cleverly incorporates references to other classic books and folklore. I can honestly say I have never read anything quite like this before and I was totally enchanted from start to finish. I think this book will be enjoyed by anyone with a love of books, words and language, it's a really original concept that has been brilliantly executed by the author.
December 14, 2020
I was excited to hear about this as I love a book about books and words. This is a very interesting concept, words having a life of their own and having concerns about being forgotten or misused - 'If humans stop reading us, we'll be forgotten'.
There was lots of clever wordplay, like syllable salve and verbal tea as well as playing visually with the actual words on the page. I found the graphic and gory description of being spoken was a bit too horrible for me. It almost put me off wanting to speaking at all. It also gets a bit sinister in parts with the scary brackets.
There were some hints as to what the word actually is though I couldn't guess, and I'm still not sure what it was, I don't think it is clear, though I might have missed something.
The physical book is wonderful, with lovely illustrations and wordplay with the actual printing. The cover underneath the dusk jacket is beautiful! Plus I love the author's name, makes me think of Alice vorpal sword! In fact, the story is quite fantastical like Alice in Wonderland, while the ending made me think of The Neverending Story.
There was lots of clever wordplay, like syllable salve and verbal tea as well as playing visually with the actual words on the page. I found the graphic and gory description of being spoken was a bit too horrible for me. It almost put me off wanting to speaking at all. It also gets a bit sinister in parts with the scary brackets.
There were some hints as to what the word actually is though I couldn't guess, and I'm still not sure what it was, I don't think it is clear, though I might have missed something.
The physical book is wonderful, with lovely illustrations and wordplay with the actual printing. The cover underneath the dusk jacket is beautiful! Plus I love the author's name, makes me think of Alice vorpal sword! In fact, the story is quite fantastical like Alice in Wonderland, while the ending made me think of The Neverending Story.
November 11, 2020
This was a difficult book to review, because I loved the writing and the concept behind it, and there were some moments that showed flashes of brilliance. Yet, at the same time it is one of those books that left me unsure of how I felt about it at the end. The execution I feel could have been tighter, and it may have been a book that benefited from being longer, as there were ideas and scenes that felt a little contrived, but I feel would have worked if they had been extended just a little. However, for all that I did enjoy this book, and it was a love letter to language and words, and such an intriguing, unique concept, that I'm glad I gave into curiosity and gave it a go.
November 23, 2020
I loved the concept of this and the language used throughout.
It was very informative and an idea that I don’t think I’ve read before, meeting ‘a word’ that’s lost it’s ‘meaning’. How original! I had my reservations about this as it’s not normally a genre I go for but I really enjoyed it.
The various paths one word can take you down and the change in meaning if used in certain mannerisms etc.
I do think it could have been doing with being a little longer but other than that, I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from Elias!
It was very informative and an idea that I don’t think I’ve read before, meeting ‘a word’ that’s lost it’s ‘meaning’. How original! I had my reservations about this as it’s not normally a genre I go for but I really enjoyed it.
The various paths one word can take you down and the change in meaning if used in certain mannerisms etc.
I do think it could have been doing with being a little longer but other than that, I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from Elias!
January 6, 2021
I had high expectations for this quirky little story. Perhaps that was the problem.
Parts of it I really liked - others were just OK. I think its unusualness was the most appealing aspect of the story. A story about a word searching for its meaning.
Being an avid wordy girl, I went so far as to write down all the letters that appeared in the illustrations, thinking I'd work out what the word was before the big reveal at the end. I got this:
TWFDUFSHLHI
It was a nice read. Nice isn't particularly a flattering word to describe a book (apologies to the word nice).
Having read Ella Minnow Pea late last year, similar(ish) in quirkiness, The Word Trove didn't quite come up to scratch.
I'm glad I read it but it's doubtful I'll return to it.
Parts of it I really liked - others were just OK. I think its unusualness was the most appealing aspect of the story. A story about a word searching for its meaning.
Being an avid wordy girl, I went so far as to write down all the letters that appeared in the illustrations, thinking I'd work out what the word was before the big reveal at the end. I got this:
TWFDUFSHLHI
It was a nice read. Nice isn't particularly a flattering word to describe a book (apologies to the word nice).
Having read Ella Minnow Pea late last year, similar(ish) in quirkiness, The Word Trove didn't quite come up to scratch.
I'm glad I read it but it's doubtful I'll return to it.
November 27, 2020
First of all, a huge thank you to NetGalley and Elias for this ebook, I’m very grateful! ❤️
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This is a genuinely magical novel about the exploration of language and the importance it holds for all of us. Vorpahl is poetic in every sentence throughout this original and iconic idea, and I feel so enlightened after reading it. 📚
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THE WORD TROVE is written from the perspective of a word that has lost its meaning. It sounds strange, I know, but this is a genuinely incredible depiction of the many meanings that words have and the many directions in which they can take us. 💚
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Truly beautiful Elias, thank you. 😊
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This is a genuinely magical novel about the exploration of language and the importance it holds for all of us. Vorpahl is poetic in every sentence throughout this original and iconic idea, and I feel so enlightened after reading it. 📚
.
THE WORD TROVE is written from the perspective of a word that has lost its meaning. It sounds strange, I know, but this is a genuinely incredible depiction of the many meanings that words have and the many directions in which they can take us. 💚
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Truly beautiful Elias, thank you. 😊
November 30, 2020
I received a free copy from Net Gallery in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed reading this book, loved the concept and the writing style. The book could have been longer as there were scenes that I felt were rushed. I also don’t know how to feel about the end of the story. I enjoyed this novel, it was an original story of a word that has lost its meaning, exploring our language the meaning and importance for us. I’m so glad I gave this book a go!
I really enjoyed reading this book, loved the concept and the writing style. The book could have been longer as there were scenes that I felt were rushed. I also don’t know how to feel about the end of the story. I enjoyed this novel, it was an original story of a word that has lost its meaning, exploring our language the meaning and importance for us. I’m so glad I gave this book a go!
December 13, 2020
Enchanting and beautiful.
First of all, the quality of the book itself surprised me so much. I couldn't stop looking at it. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful, the dust jacket is beautiful, and the story is so magical and enjoyable that I could barely put it down.
The way it has been written was so beautiful. It was hard to believe that it was a transition. I found it worked so well in English.
One of my favourite parts was chapter 7, "The linguistic games". I loved the stories told within this chapter and their meanings. My favourite part of the chapter was probably the story of the little girl and the snake. The meaning of it was so wonderful and absolutely beautiful. I found myself relating to parts of this story. The way that they talked about books how how much they mean to a person was something I loved as I can relate to that.
My favourite quote is probably "For in the end, all we are doing is seeking to weave poetry into life, to find poetry in life itself." I thought that it was so beautiful and its meaning meant a lot to me, I'm not sure why though. But it was just so beautiful.
The storyline was absolutely brilliant and the way the last to chapters were written were absolutely brilliant and so clever as well. I love so much about this book and I am definitely going to read it again.
First of all, the quality of the book itself surprised me so much. I couldn't stop looking at it. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful, the dust jacket is beautiful, and the story is so magical and enjoyable that I could barely put it down.
The way it has been written was so beautiful. It was hard to believe that it was a transition. I found it worked so well in English.
One of my favourite parts was chapter 7, "The linguistic games". I loved the stories told within this chapter and their meanings. My favourite part of the chapter was probably the story of the little girl and the snake. The meaning of it was so wonderful and absolutely beautiful. I found myself relating to parts of this story. The way that they talked about books how how much they mean to a person was something I loved as I can relate to that.
My favourite quote is probably "For in the end, all we are doing is seeking to weave poetry into life, to find poetry in life itself." I thought that it was so beautiful and its meaning meant a lot to me, I'm not sure why though. But it was just so beautiful.
The storyline was absolutely brilliant and the way the last to chapters were written were absolutely brilliant and so clever as well. I love so much about this book and I am definitely going to read it again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 4, 2024
This book and I didn't really click. I had trouble getting into it and it felt hard to pick it up again and again.
There might be a wonderful story hiding between the pages, but I couldn't find it.
There might be a wonderful story hiding between the pages, but I couldn't find it.
April 10, 2021
This enchanting tale about language was next level to engage in. At first I struggled to get into it because of just how unique it is. I loved the design and the name of the book was creative, it was definitely not what I would have expected by the title but it made sense to use that title as I continued to read it. It was so lovely to read such a different take on a book.
However it took some getting used to, it was one of those books that I found myself coming on and off reading it because it sounded good but I just lost motivation for it.
Somehow it twisted language into an adventurous tale– it was poetic to see words being personified and makes you think about all of the words forgotten or replaced! As the word tries to find out it's meaning it shows that there are so many different paths you can choose to take in life.
I'm not sure I'd read it again though.
However it took some getting used to, it was one of those books that I found myself coming on and off reading it because it sounded good but I just lost motivation for it.
Somehow it twisted language into an adventurous tale– it was poetic to see words being personified and makes you think about all of the words forgotten or replaced! As the word tries to find out it's meaning it shows that there are so many different paths you can choose to take in life.
I'm not sure I'd read it again though.
January 26, 2021
This book is wonderful, it is so different which makes it hard to review. All I can say is that everyone should read this book - it has echoes of the Phantom Tollbooth and I can see me now buying it and giving it to everyone I know to relish and enjoy themselves
February 19, 2021
This was a unique novel and story, like nothing I have every read! I am planning on reading to my children, I think they will absolutely love its whimsy and storytelling!
January 6, 2021
I need to take a moment to digest this beautiful little book.
I did not expect 161 pages to have such a profound impact. This short novel is an absolute delight. Immersive, fabulous word play, a vivid world and a unique perspective... I could go on and on.
There were moments that made me think of other favourite stories- the Word we follow is much like a "Borrower", there are chapters that plunge you into a deja vu of "Alice in Wonderland"...to the fable like Linguistic Games that are so poignant I found myself welling up with emotion. And this isn't an English book in origination! This is a translation!
Elias Vorpahl together with Romy Fursland's translation and the stunning illustrations from Julia Stolba and the construction and design of this slim hardback by Lena Toschka make for a magical, beautiful, emotional read. I highly recommend this book, it is one that will sit lovingly on my shelf, to be cherished and revisited in moments to come.
I did not expect 161 pages to have such a profound impact. This short novel is an absolute delight. Immersive, fabulous word play, a vivid world and a unique perspective... I could go on and on.
There were moments that made me think of other favourite stories- the Word we follow is much like a "Borrower", there are chapters that plunge you into a deja vu of "Alice in Wonderland"...to the fable like Linguistic Games that are so poignant I found myself welling up with emotion. And this isn't an English book in origination! This is a translation!
Elias Vorpahl together with Romy Fursland's translation and the stunning illustrations from Julia Stolba and the construction and design of this slim hardback by Lena Toschka make for a magical, beautiful, emotional read. I highly recommend this book, it is one that will sit lovingly on my shelf, to be cherished and revisited in moments to come.
January 3, 2021
This book is absolutely beautiful, I read it in one sitting and simply couldn’t put it down!
The story followed a words journey of self discovery and all of its struggles along the way. Our heroine, meets many memorable characters along her journey and we see some recognisable characters. The way the author involves other stories in his chapters such as ‘watership down’ and ‘Alice’s adventures in wonderland’ was so fun to read!
The way the novel was written was like nothing I had ever read before.
The English translation has been done perfectly!
The Illustrations at the beginning of each chapter are gorgeous and the way they incorporate the chapter titles and opening sentences is just perfect!
This is not the type of book I would usually read and I have to say, it was a little slow to start with but it certainly kicked in quick enough.
The chapter lengths are just about right I would say as well as the novel length itself.
Would 100% recommend for a quick read as it took me around 45mins to read.
The story followed a words journey of self discovery and all of its struggles along the way. Our heroine, meets many memorable characters along her journey and we see some recognisable characters. The way the author involves other stories in his chapters such as ‘watership down’ and ‘Alice’s adventures in wonderland’ was so fun to read!
The way the novel was written was like nothing I had ever read before.
The English translation has been done perfectly!
The Illustrations at the beginning of each chapter are gorgeous and the way they incorporate the chapter titles and opening sentences is just perfect!
This is not the type of book I would usually read and I have to say, it was a little slow to start with but it certainly kicked in quick enough.
The chapter lengths are just about right I would say as well as the novel length itself.
Would 100% recommend for a quick read as it took me around 45mins to read.
December 5, 2020
🌌 How wonderful it is to surf through some other world, may it be a wonderfully created fairy world or a parallel universe or maybe an animal kingdom. We have witnessed all of this type of world in books and films at several points of time. But we are yet to know the world of words. And here is a book I recently read which introduces to the most astonishing world of words - The world of language.
📖'The Word Trove' is Elias Vorpahl 's Debut novel. The book is originally in German which was translated to English by Romy Fursland.
🌬️The book starts with a story of a Word, which is loudly read by a human which in return makes the word forget it's meaning. And this incident accidentally sends the Word on an unknown yet an interesting journey through the world of language to find its meaning. Let's see where it leads too. How cool is this?
💌I loved how the writer has chosen the theme. He has beautifully written about how words are afraid of being loudly read by humans, and how they enjoy being a part of the song or how they feel of being out of use and he also tried to represent the unbreakable yet important relationship between a human and language.
🎎The author has established the characters, situations and the surroundings very nicely. It must have been difficult to select the names as it was important to carry the meaning of their name along with the story. I also loved the part of the book where the author has mentioned how deaf people do conversation.
🧧The language of the book is simple and easy to understand. You will find some Archaic words. As you can see the wonderful cover of the book, but that is not the only illustration. There are many more wonderful illustrations inside the book. I will really like to appreciate Julia Stolba and Lena Toschka for the wonderful cover and the illustrations.
📢There are a few very beautiful lines which I have quoted below.
1️⃣"There are thousands of paths for you to take. Recognising the path that gives you meaning is the greatest challenge of all."
2️⃣"Saying the right words at the right time is like magic."
🗣️This must be for the first time that I wished that this book should have been a bit longer, I wanted to read it more. Overall I loved the book very much and do recommend this to every reader. You can buy the book from Amazon.
🥳At Last, I will Thank Netgalley and Iron Bird Publishing for the eARC of the book. And Yes, I would love to have a physical copy of this. 😅😅
📖'The Word Trove' is Elias Vorpahl 's Debut novel. The book is originally in German which was translated to English by Romy Fursland.
🌬️The book starts with a story of a Word, which is loudly read by a human which in return makes the word forget it's meaning. And this incident accidentally sends the Word on an unknown yet an interesting journey through the world of language to find its meaning. Let's see where it leads too. How cool is this?
💌I loved how the writer has chosen the theme. He has beautifully written about how words are afraid of being loudly read by humans, and how they enjoy being a part of the song or how they feel of being out of use and he also tried to represent the unbreakable yet important relationship between a human and language.
🎎The author has established the characters, situations and the surroundings very nicely. It must have been difficult to select the names as it was important to carry the meaning of their name along with the story. I also loved the part of the book where the author has mentioned how deaf people do conversation.
🧧The language of the book is simple and easy to understand. You will find some Archaic words. As you can see the wonderful cover of the book, but that is not the only illustration. There are many more wonderful illustrations inside the book. I will really like to appreciate Julia Stolba and Lena Toschka for the wonderful cover and the illustrations.
📢There are a few very beautiful lines which I have quoted below.
1️⃣"There are thousands of paths for you to take. Recognising the path that gives you meaning is the greatest challenge of all."
2️⃣"Saying the right words at the right time is like magic."
🗣️This must be for the first time that I wished that this book should have been a bit longer, I wanted to read it more. Overall I loved the book very much and do recommend this to every reader. You can buy the book from Amazon.
🥳At Last, I will Thank Netgalley and Iron Bird Publishing for the eARC of the book. And Yes, I would love to have a physical copy of this. 😅😅
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