Word Power Made Easy

Why do you want to increase the size of your vocabulary? If you want just want to show off then this may be a book for you. However, if you want to be able to formulate your thoughts more precisely stay away from it. The method that the author proposes gives you a rough idea of the meaning of a word. That's it. After working through the book you may be able to say the same thing in six different ways, but you will not be able to tell the subtle differences in implication. That the author likewise lacks this level of sophistication becomes abundantly clear, e.g., when he claims that a palace and a castle are 'the same'. In order to really extend your vocabulary I would rather recommend to read book by Joyce, Hemmingway or Dickens -- they also make a more enjoyable read.

I already had a copy of the book long back. I guess someone borrowed it and "forgot" to return it back. Really simple, yet packs a punch. Very effective too.

The author makes a biased mistake very early in this book.

One of the words is in an introductory vocabulary test is "atheist," which is incorrectly defined as "a disbeliever in God." The "A" in atheist is a prefix for "without," and a theist is someone who believes in a god, or gods, that actively participate in the Universe. The author's definition is wrong, which made it easy for me to put this book down and look for something else.

As most other reviewers remarked, this book is probably the best and most efficient book to truely improve your vocabulary. The ideas and methologies in this book will benefit you for years to come. But be warned, this book is not for some leisurely reading, where you magically improve your vocabulary in a few weeks. I bought this book a couple of month ago and I'm just half way through, although I work on it almost every day. As the author mentions in the opening chapter, to really learn you have to have the desire to learn new things, new ideas, just like a child does. Only then will you be able to really improve. Only if you really have that desire will you be able to finish this book.

One of the great things about this book, is that each keyword is first described by an 'idea' behind the word. Meaning, you first get a paragraph of some habit/characteristic/attribute and once you think, "yes, I know exactly what you mean", only then will he present you with a single new word, which expresses exactly what that entire paragraph described. The next sections then work with those new words and dissect them and show you where they come from (either Latin or Greek) and other words build on the same root. You also have to write down exercises to work with those new words. The author also encourages the reader to read aloud so you really familiarize yourself with those new words. The pronunciation guide is also surprisingly effective.

If you're serious about building/improving your vocabulary, buy this book, you won't regret it. Absolutely worth 5 stars.

I've tried several vocabulary building books and this book by Norman Lewis is the best. After reading this book, I never look at the words same way again. This book not only teach me how to approach unfamiliar words, but also arouse my desire to learn new words.