This is a charming book and one that provided solace during the current world crisis. It is filled with lots of words no longer in common usage that describe some of the more challenging emotions and experiences we may face. I dipped in and out of it over a couple of weeks and loved finding out the history and background to these words, and many provided comfort. At times, it felt like a hug in a book.

I fell in love with the concept of angel visits which relates to missing our friends and the memories we hold about enjoyable times we've had in the past with them. But my absolute favourite was aphercotropism – for when you're facing obstacles. I read the section on this word several times as I found it reassuring, consoling, and it inspired hope.

I'm not usually a big non-fiction reader, but I'd highly recommend this book as a place to turn when you need something soothing. It's definitely a book you can return to again and again.

I'd like to thank Netgalley, the publisher and Paul Anthony Jones for letting me read an advance copy of the book.

After hearing about this book on the radio I was delighted to read a copy, and while it probably makes a better book in physical format I still found it captivating.
Bizarre words and customs fascinate me and so this book was just the thing for me. I just know I'm going to be buying copies of this book as gifts.

“Every word in this collection is about being kind to ourselves and others, curing and calming our worries and problems, restoring hope and maintaining positivity.”

If ever we needed some soothing words, it is surely in these troubled times we find ourselves living in. So it is entirely appropriate, although coincidental, that this book was scheduled to be published this month. I expect the author had no inkling of just how apt some of the words he has included in this book would be by the time it made its way out into the world.

This book lists a collection of lesser known, very infrequently used words and provides a definition for each, as well as a history of the word. So many of the words included seem to speak to our everyday experiences just now as we go through this worrying time, with many of us confined to home and unable to see loved ones as we would want to.

There’s interfulgent – for when you are feeling bleak or you lack hope, a word which describes anything that shines through and offers hope. Self–soothe – for when you are having trouble sleeping, a common problem for many just now I’m sure. If you self-soothe, you calm your mind and send yourself peacefully off to sleep. Then there’s angel-visits – a word to think about when you are missing your friends. Angel-visits are meetings with friends which happen too infrequently and I think we can all identify with that just now.

My personal favourite word from the book is agathism – for when you’re feeling disillusionment or struggling to remain positive. It’s a word that describes the state roughly between optimism and pessimism and reminds us that although things may be difficult right now, they will be brighter in the future. We should focus on the good times which will eventually return.

The Cabinet of Calm is a fascinating book which would be ideal to dip in and out of. As well as lots of detail about the etymology of each word and its usage in the past, there are also information about similar or related words as well as really interesting little anecdotes. Whatever thought or feeling perturbs you in difficult times, there’s likely to be an entry for an appropriate word in this book. It’s a wee gem of a book and sure to be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in words and where they come from.