An Unlikely Hero

Mental illness does not preclude intelligence, as this book illustrates. One of the main contributors to the Oxford English Dictionary, a herculean task taking decades to complete, was an inpatient at a mental hospital for the criminally insane for the majority of his life. It was there that he learned of the opportunity to submit definitions and quotations for consideration. I'd read another book on this topic, but felt this one was more thorough in fleshing out Dr. Minor's life behind the veil of the dictionary. Interesting and honestly, heartbreaking.