The Big Book of Beastly Mispronunciations

My sister gave me this book because I am what Mr. Elster refers to as a “spelling pronouncer” - I come across unfamiliar words in print and never bother to look up the correct pronunciation. I've used this book to check on words when someone calls me out on a mispronunciation, and it's been very useful. However, it wasn't until I started reading this book straight through, for my Dewey Decimal Challenge, that I got really hooked on it. There were so many regular words that I never would have checked that I - and everyone I know - have been mispronouncing, it was fascinating. Examples? Okay!

Grocery: apparently it is groh-suh-ree, with an S, not grohsh-ree, with an SH. I've probably said and heard this word a million times in my life, and never once with an S sound.

New: the proper way to say it is NYOO, like in newt. Surprised the pants off me!

Any word with “-alm”: ahm, with no L sound. This one was a total shock because it meant that I've been saying balm, calm, palm, psalm, almond, etc. completely wrong. Except for salmon, that one I nailed (small consolation). Really, we are supposed to pronounce balm like bomb? Really?! Frankly, there's no way I'm going to starting saying these words without the L sound because it sounds awful to my ears.

My favorite passages are the ones that contain fun tidbits, like calling out famous people for saying something wrong, or describing a personal encounter with a mispronouncer. Also when the author gives information about a pronunciation that goes beyond what is in various dictionaries, such as how locals say a certain place name.

One very big thing I've taken away from this book is a sensitivity when it comes to the words pronounce and pronunciation. They came up a lot in this book (obviously), and I was saying “pronunciation” wrong (I think; it's sometimes hard to remember how you say a word in your natural speech). Now I'm very aware of it, for better or worse.