An Exaltation of Larks: The Ultimate Edition
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- Author：James Lipton
- ISBN：0140170960
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Summary
An "exaltation of larks"？ Yes！ And a "leap of leopards，" a "parliament of owls，" an "ostentation of peacocks，" a "smack of jellyfish，" and a "murder of crows"！
For those who have ever wondered if the familiar "pride of lions" and "gaggle of geese" were only the tip of a linguistic iceberg， James Lipton has provided the definitive answer: here are hundreds of equally pithy， and often poetic， terms unearthed by Mr。 Lipton in the Books of Venery that were the constant study of anyone who aspired to the title of gentleman in the fifteenth century。 When Mr。 Lipton's painstaking research revealed that five hundred years ago the terms of venery had already been turned into the Game of Venery， he embarked on an odyssey that has given us a "slouch of models，" a "shrivel of critics，" an "unction of undertakers，" a "blur of Impressionists，" a "score of bachelors，" and a "pocket of quarterbacks。"
This ultimate edition of An Exaltation of Larks is Mr。 Lipton's brilliant answer to the assault on language and literacy in the last decades of the twentieth century。 In it you will find more than 1，100 resurrected or newly minted contributions to that most endangered of all species， our language， in a setting of 250 witty， beautiful， and remarkably apt engravings。
For those who have ever wondered if the familiar "pride of lions" and "gaggle of geese" were only the tip of a linguistic iceberg， James Lipton has provided the definitive answer: here are hundreds of equally pithy， and often poetic， terms unearthed by Mr。 Lipton in the Books of Venery that were the constant study of anyone who aspired to the title of gentleman in the fifteenth century。 When Mr。 Lipton's painstaking research revealed that five hundred years ago the terms of venery had already been turned into the Game of Venery， he embarked on an odyssey that has given us a "slouch of models，" a "shrivel of critics，" an "unction of undertakers，" a "blur of Impressionists，" a "score of bachelors，" and a "pocket of quarterbacks。"
This ultimate edition of An Exaltation of Larks is Mr。 Lipton's brilliant answer to the assault on language and literacy in the last decades of the twentieth century。 In it you will find more than 1，100 resurrected or newly minted contributions to that most endangered of all species， our language， in a setting of 250 witty， beautiful， and remarkably apt engravings。
Reviews
Maureen Forys
，
This was delightful。
Gedalia Robinson
，
Not only ahhhhmazing， but the right amount of essay and perspective around the venereal terms to not make it dryly encyclopedic。 So fun！！
W。B。
，
Yes， it's that James Lipton。 This is a good book to feed your dreams。 As the title suggests， it's a collection of collective nouns for various groupings of beings or things。 Lipton makes suggestions for new additions to the arcana of Collectiviana and those are hit or miss， in this reader's opinion。 Some are groaners。 The delight of collective nouns is usually their mystery。 They should suggest the grouping described but also add a little bit of oomph that makes the phrase sound like a weird lin Yes， it's that James Lipton。 This is a good book to feed your dreams。 As the title suggests， it's a collection of collective nouns for various groupings of beings or things。 Lipton makes suggestions for new additions to the arcana of Collectiviana and those are hit or miss， in this reader's opinion。 Some are groaners。 The delight of collective nouns is usually their mystery。 They should suggest the grouping described but also add a little bit of oomph that makes the phrase sound like a weird line of poetry。 That's what makes them memorable。 Lipton's innovations tend to be a little pedantic and overly descriptive。 （Read: cliches。） Charmingly surreal illustrations anachronistic as all get out （mostly of animals dressed in "human drag"） add to the enjoyable experience of this book。 I also have the Ultimate Edition as described above but my hardcover has a different dust jacket cover （consistent with the inner art）。 I think the cover art of my edition is more appealing than the edition pictured above which could probably light a dim room enough for you to find your way out of it （so there's that）。 。。。more
Joclyn Reilly
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This is more of a reference book， but fun to flip through。
Janine R
，
Fun book to browse
Peter
，
What a delightful book。 Part serious investigation into the origin and use of words， part chatty and fun， part game and all the above wrapped up with interesting， eclectic illustrations。 This is one of those books that you can browse， study， ponder over， disagree with and add to with equal joy and energy。It even comes with a section of suggested games so you too can be creative。It is， to expand the list in the book， a woopie of joy。
Shruts
，
This is a Word Nerd book。 I am using it as a short term read， as each page seemingly stands on its own。 Certainly each chapter does， built as they are around a common theme。 But there is no harm in reading a page， or ten， and then putting the book down for an indefinite period。 No continuity lost。The book explores the naming of groups。 Surely everyone knows of a Gaggle of Geese， a School of Fish， a Flock of Sheep， etc。 Less known are WHY these group names arose and endure。 Some go back to Elizab This is a Word Nerd book。 I am using it as a short term read， as each page seemingly stands on its own。 Certainly each chapter does， built as they are around a common theme。 But there is no harm in reading a page， or ten， and then putting the book down for an indefinite period。 No continuity lost。The book explores the naming of groups。 Surely everyone knows of a Gaggle of Geese， a School of Fish， a Flock of Sheep， etc。 Less known are WHY these group names arose and endure。 Some go back to Elizabethan times， and even more amusingly， many are clever puns or other form of wordplay。 A Wince of Dentists， a Lot of Realtors， a Leap of Leopards， for example。Many knew James Lipton as an actor， producer， educator， novelist， but most famously as the host of Inside The Actors' Studio， broadcast for years on television， with Lipton interviewing actors before an audience of drama students。 If you had ever watched， you would have realized that Lipton liked the sound of his voice。 Hence the chapter introductions tend to be both verbose and filled with multi-syllabic "bon mots"。 Not to worry。 Skip over if you will and get to the definitions and origins of rarely used but often amusing group names。 A Chime of Ice Cream Carts， Pummel of Masseurs。。。。。。 。。。more
Jonathan
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A light， quick read。 Lipton's classification of terms of venery is itself worth reading。 A light， quick read。 Lipton's classification of terms of venery is itself worth reading。 。。。more
Emily
，
Fun book and very thoroughly researched
Jflow
，
Less a book in a narrative sense， and more a reference book， an Exaltation of Larks is a fantastic collection of names for groups， and a reflection of the history and transformation of language。 Wonderful examples of groups such as 'a murder of crows'， 'a gaggle of geese' and （my personal favorite） 'a rage of maidens' are mostly well known， however the book contains a collection of terms to describe groups seemingly without limit to include names for nouns of all kinds， and invites the reader to Less a book in a narrative sense， and more a reference book， an Exaltation of Larks is a fantastic collection of names for groups， and a reflection of the history and transformation of language。 Wonderful examples of groups such as 'a murder of crows'， 'a gaggle of geese' and （my personal favorite） 'a rage of maidens' are mostly well known， however the book contains a collection of terms to describe groups seemingly without limit to include names for nouns of all kinds， and invites the reader to come up with clever names of their own。 The illustrations for certain terms is also a delight， and pull the reader in with not only terms you may not have heard of， but also descriptions of the origins of phrases where applicable。 RIP James Lipton 。。。more
Ted Manahan
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Some useful terms， mostly just fun。
Diane Lynn
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Not as interesting as I thought it would be。 Seemed a jumble of unconnected topics。 Better organization would have helped。
BooksRgood
，
a short essay and a few lists - a joyful look at the poetry and humor in our language。 Specifically re the subject of collective nouns dating back to the 1400s！ A murmuration of starlings！ A parliament of owls！！ a charm of finches！！！ A smack of jellyfish！！！！ An unkindness of ravens！！！ A clowder of cats！？！？ A kindle of kittens！ An ostentation of peacocks！！ A wince of dentists！！！！ and on and on。 also some fun old quotes re language:TS Eliot: Words， "。。。slip， slide， perish， decay with imprecision， a short essay and a few lists - a joyful look at the poetry and humor in our language。 Specifically re the subject of collective nouns dating back to the 1400s！ A murmuration of starlings！ A parliament of owls！！ a charm of finches！！！ A smack of jellyfish！！！！ An unkindness of ravens！！！ A clowder of cats！？！？ A kindle of kittens！ An ostentation of peacocks！！ A wince of dentists！！！！ and on and on。 also some fun old quotes re language:TS Eliot: Words， "。。。slip， slide， perish， decay with imprecision， will not stay in place， will not stay still。"and thoughts on poetry: Wordsworth: "。。。emotion recollected in tranquility。"Coleridge: "。。。the best words in their best order。"Elizabeth Drew: "。。。 one great source of the maintenance and renewal of language。" 。。。more
হাঁটুপানির জলদস্যু
，
শব্দ সম্পর্কে আমাদের সবার মনের দরজার ভেতরের কপাটে নিজস্ব （অনবশ্য স্বকীয়） একটা রায় পেরেক মারা আছে। যখন আমরা একটা অচেনা শব্দ （যেমন এর আগের বাক্যে অনবশ্য （= not necessarily， অনাবশ্যকের সাথে গুলিয়ে ফেললে চলবে না） পড়ি বা শুনি， মনের দরজা লাগিয়ে ঐ রায়টা আমরা একবার পড়ে নিই। প্রতিটি শব্দ আমাদের প্রতি জনের সে রায়ের জোরে বাঁচে， বন্দী থাকে， সমাহিত হয়， পুনর্জীবন পায়।অবশিষ্টাংশ。。。 শব্দ সম্পর্কে আমাদের সবার মনের দরজার ভেতরের কপাটে নিজস্ব （অনবশ্য স্বকীয়） একটা রায় পেরেক মারা আছে। যখন আমরা একটা অচেনা শব্দ （যেমন এর আগের বাক্যে অনবশ্য （= not necessarily， অনাবশ্যকের সাথে গুলিয়ে ফেললে চলবে না） পড়ি বা শুনি， মনের দরজা লাগিয়ে ঐ রায়টা আমরা একবার পড়ে নিই। প্রতিটি শব্দ আমাদের প্রতি জনের সে রায়ের জোরে বাঁচে， বন্দী থাকে， সমাহিত হয়， পুনর্জীবন পায়।অবশিষ্টাংশ。。。 。。。more
Sparrow
，
I read the intermediate second edition， larger than the slim debut volume， but much smaller than the final Leaves of Grass-style final version。 The black and white engravings are astonishing （and woefully uncredited， except for the phrase “curiously appropriate illustrations from the work of such masters as Dürer and Grandville” on the back cover）。 The collective nouns are all in capital letters， like “A DRAY OF SQUIRRELS” and “A CRY OF PLAYERS。” （The latter is accompanied by the note: “The prop I read the intermediate second edition， larger than the slim debut volume， but much smaller than the final Leaves of Grass-style final version。 The black and white engravings are astonishing （and woefully uncredited， except for the phrase “curiously appropriate illustrations from the work of such masters as Dürer and Grandville” on the back cover）。 The collective nouns are all in capital letters， like “A DRAY OF SQUIRRELS” and “A CRY OF PLAYERS。” （The latter is accompanied by the note: “The proper venereal term for a troupe of actors in the 16th century。”） I wish I could write one of these。 “AN IMPERTINENCE OF PEDDLERS。” How rich was our language before industrial capitalism ground it down to fine powder！ 。。。more
Susanna Natti
，
My parents had a copy of the first edition of An Exaltation of Larks。 I remember enjoying leafing through that copy and enjoying the playful descriptors of groups。 I don't recall how deeply James Lipton went in that first edition， but this ultimate edition is considerably augmented。 Lipton writes about going deeper into the origins of "venery"， this delightful and insightful way of both describing and categorizing groups of animals， objects and people。 I had no idea that this game of venery was My parents had a copy of the first edition of An Exaltation of Larks。 I remember enjoying leafing through that copy and enjoying the playful descriptors of groups。 I don't recall how deeply James Lipton went in that first edition， but this ultimate edition is considerably augmented。 Lipton writes about going deeper into the origins of "venery"， this delightful and insightful way of both describing and categorizing groups of animals， objects and people。 I had no idea that this game of venery was an entertainment several hundred years ago， and that phrases we take for granted like "a pack of dogs"， "a hill of beans"， "a string of ponies" and many others arose from this aristocratic pursuit。 Lipton takes us through those familiar turns of phrase just to point out how they have enriched our language and then deliciously resurrects others that have fallen into disuse。 He finally offers pages and pages of contemporary offerings， many of which were contributed by readers of his first book。 In the last pages， he offers ways for you to take part in the game of venery， in the form of parlor games。 Anyone who loves words will enjoy a deep dive into the richness of the English language offered here by James Lipton。 。。。more
Laura
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Language is fascinating。
J
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This is one giant book of venery terms and I totally enjoyed it。 While others suffer from reading hangover I am having a serious craving for just picking this book up， hugging it tightly then shoving it onto my bookshelf rather than returning it。 It makes me want to cry that such intelligent words have to be returned to where they came from *sigh*。 The author himself can be quite wordy in those parts where he has free rein away from the actual reading to explain his subject。 His language isn't This is one giant book of venery terms and I totally enjoyed it。 While others suffer from reading hangover I am having a serious craving for just picking this book up， hugging it tightly then shoving it onto my bookshelf rather than returning it。 It makes me want to cry that such intelligent words have to be returned to where they came from *sigh*。 The author himself can be quite wordy in those parts where he has free rein away from the actual reading to explain his subject。 His language isn't for beginning readers as he loves to dance the tightrope between being easily understand and needing a dictionary。 At the same time and for those who want to skip the discussion parts （if you do you will be missing a very giant yummy portion of linguistic learning if you enjoy that） the rest of the book is easily accessible。 The author has done a great job of categorizing the majority of his words to fit the categories into which he thinks the terms of venery belong such as newer terms， older terms that are still in use and some that have fallen out of place。 Strangely enough some of those that are suppose to be in the latter group are still in use even now。 The first two categories are a little bit harder to maneuver due to they are just provided with the terms unlike the third part， which is broken down into further groups。 The terms of venery are given as at most a smattering on each page so there aren't too many to overwhelm the reader。 Some of them have furthermore explanations as to why their combination was put together and/or the explanation of why the two words perfectly balance each other out。 Finally the author has his second section of the book dedicated to helping his readers to continue on their own Hunt whether it is a solitary game or one with friends。 The different versions provided just helps to give more courses for those who want to increase their fun nights of linguistic challenges。 At the same time the reader is given a refreshing break with the illustrations mostly from J。 J。 Grandville， who was a French caricaturist。 As such the reader will find many whimsical illustrations of animal-headed human-bodied creatures parodying the world of men。 All in all this was a wonderful balance between linguistic explorations and refreshing tongue-in-cheek comedy。 For those who enjoy terms of venery this will be one book that you definitely won't want to surrender back to the library if you have to。 。。。more
LelaineMarie
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An absolutely wonderful book a “shimmer of hummingbirds” or a “scold of blue jays” — who knew？
Daryll
，
An absolutely interesting read。
Jj Li
，
I don't even remember how this book ended up on my to-read list， I just know it's been on there for a while。 An Exaltation of Larks is part reference book， part game book， part English nerd jokery。 It's about collective nouns， both ones that can trace their origins back to the 15th century， and new ones that I'm convinced Lipton made up。 It's a quick， dictionary esque read （anyone else read the dictionary as a kid？ Only me？）， which while enjoyable， gives an interesting perspective on how languag I don't even remember how this book ended up on my to-read list， I just know it's been on there for a while。 An Exaltation of Larks is part reference book， part game book， part English nerd jokery。 It's about collective nouns， both ones that can trace their origins back to the 15th century， and new ones that I'm convinced Lipton made up。 It's a quick， dictionary esque read （anyone else read the dictionary as a kid？ Only me？）， which while enjoyable， gives an interesting perspective on how language has changed。 The ultimate edition is from 1993， and it really shows its age in some places， and is timeless in others。For example， a lot of the catholic terms came up from Reformation England， so an Abomination of Nuns （which someone needs to tell Catholic school kids about this collective noun） is an actual term。 Some are timeless， like an exaltation of Larks， while some are。。。 unpleasant， like a falsetto of transvestites （in the debauchery section， I might add）。 Overall， while this is an interesting introduction to game of venery， it is definitely several years out of date and very white， upper class men （see， an inertia of Janitor or a Calcutta of Cab drivers）。 I'd be fascinated to see one with more input from various groups - for example， what would a group of trans* people consider themselves？ What about gender fluid？Overall， an interesting invitation to a years old game that needs to be brought in this century。 。。。more
robyn
，
At some point in your life you heard the phrase， a charm of goldfinches， or a parliament of owls， or an unkindness of ravens， and however briefly， you were enchanted。 Perhaps you took the time to find out what other wonderful phrases there might be out there， and you found list after list。 Then your attention was caught by the next amazing thing you'd never known before， and you forgot that for a moment you'd been fascinated by terms of venery。Nonetheless， they've been part of your life all the At some point in your life you heard the phrase， a charm of goldfinches， or a parliament of owls， or an unkindness of ravens， and however briefly， you were enchanted。 Perhaps you took the time to find out what other wonderful phrases there might be out there， and you found list after list。 Then your attention was caught by the next amazing thing you'd never known before， and you forgot that for a moment you'd been fascinated by terms of venery。Nonetheless， they've been part of your life all the while （a flight of stairs， a peal of bells， a round of drinks， a bouquet of flowers。。。）James Lipton made a lifelong quest of venery; he's researched， tabulated， invented， and invited others to invent， so here you'll find lists from the Middle Ages as well as lists recent enough to give us a summons of meter maids， a sleaze of tabloids， a convulsion of belly dancers。 Those are fun （and as he points out， this is a game ANYone can play） - but I really love the old， old terms。 They date from a time when the English language was burgeoning with new words， assimilating other languages， and the beauty and rightness of these phrases show it。 The ones whose meanings are obscure or lost， through changes in the language， he explains etymologically。 And he also explains one I'd never really questioned; when you learn a thing as a kid， you tend to accept it - but WHY a school of fish？ Because school is most likely a corruption of 'shoal，' which actually DOES make sense。The terms are grouped and broken out into sections， with a preface for each， and scores of line illustrations。 You can read it straight through， or leave it lying around to dip into whenever you have a few minutes to kill。Learning is rarely this lovely。 。。。more
Catherine
，
For word nerds only！
Kris
，
I love this book in any edition。 It's an essential resource for anyone who loves words and language。 I love this book in any edition。 It's an essential resource for anyone who loves words and language。 。。。more
Phrodrick
，
I had been a very happy owner of the 1977 Edition: An is Exaltation of Larks or， The Venereal Game。 It was much shorter and carried less text。 This the updated， third edition seems a step down。 Brevity， in this case being the soul of wit。 This edition has more substance。 It appears with a more complete history of the collection of collections。 There is what reads like a fair effort at providing etymologies for many of the terms。 I found the text cluttered and the insistence on using script fonts I had been a very happy owner of the 1977 Edition: An is Exaltation of Larks or， The Venereal Game。 It was much shorter and carried less text。 This the updated， third edition seems a step down。 Brevity， in this case being the soul of wit。 This edition has more substance。 It appears with a more complete history of the collection of collections。 There is what reads like a fair effort at providing etymologies for many of the terms。 I found the text cluttered and the insistence on using script fonts hard to read。Lists in the first half contained thrown together items with little or no relation to one another。 The last half was better organized but there seemed to be little care in selecting the best of offered examples。 Some were too obvious and the obscure may or may not rate explanations。Historically， terms of venery were mostly hunting terms。 Pride of Lions， Murder of Crows， Herd of Hinds and etc。 The term venery common root as venereal meaning to seek or desire ， to lust after or for this book: to hunt。 The earliest collection of list of collectives; Lipton gives as appearing in the 1300's in Norman French。 He will offer as his inspiration the List of St Albanse written about 150 years later。 It is also Lipton's opinion that this book was written by Dame Juliana and therefore the more interesting as coming from a time when few women could write and covering hunting， not a traditional 15th century center of female activity。Once Lipton gets past his history and a few stories about getting to see original copies of some of these books， he has divided the actual text into sections moving from the traditional to the modern。 We are not given any complete list for nay of the early editions。 Very old and not so old collectives may be found consecutively。 While he will make some effort to identify which old source originated which terms， in the modern lists there are a few general statements about who may have offered items under which topic， but nothing in the way of footnotes。For me the consistently best part of this edition are the illustrations。 Whimsical， detailed and entertaining， they best exemplify the humor and satiric aptness that is and was always a part of the Terms of Venery。Exaltation of Larks is not meant as a scholarly book， and it is not scholarly。 It is meant to be entertaining and it is ， mostly ， almost。 It is also cluttered， poorly organized， documented and rarely as funny as it might have been。 The shorter earlier edition was a more entertaining read。 This one is not a bad read， just not much of an entertaining read。 。。。more
Robin
，
Excellant referance。 I will not be giving this book away for awhile。
Jaq
，
This isn't a book you read so much as a book you pick up and glance through for laughs and to clear up writer's block - it's a book of lists of names of groups of things， with a bit of etymology thrown in for good measure。 Useful and entertaining。 This isn't a book you read so much as a book you pick up and glance through for laughs and to clear up writer's block - it's a book of lists of names of groups of things， with a bit of etymology thrown in for good measure。 Useful and entertaining。 。。。more
Jack Phoenix
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This book about one of the most charming quirks of the English language， grouping nouns， has at least 1，000 things to teach you。。。and it might make you chuckle while doing it。
Sarah
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