The Devil's Dictionary

Rare edition with unique illustrations and elegant classic cream paper. Satiric lexicon by Ambrose Bierce, first compiled as The Cynic's Word Book in 1906. The barbed definitions that Bierce began publishing in a weekly journal he edited in San Francisco, brought this 19th-century stock form to a new level of artistry. Employing a terse, aphoristic style, Bierce lampooned social, professional, and religious convention, as in his definitions for bore--"A person who talks when you wish him to listen"; architect--"One who drafts a plan of your house, and plans a draft of your money"; and saint--"A dead sinner revised and edited." Includes unique illustrations.