# The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows - Hardcover

by **John Koenig** (Author)

**_NEW YORK TIMES_** **BESTSELLER**

**"It's undeniably thrilling to find words for our strangest feelings...Koenig casts light into lonely corners of human experience...An enchanting book. " _\--The Washington Post_**

**A truly original book in every sense of the word, _The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows_ poetically defines emotions that we all feel but don't have the words to express--until now.**

Have you ever wondered about the lives of each person you pass on the street, realizing that everyone is the main character in their own story, each living a life as vivid and complex as your own? That feeling has a name: "sonder." Or maybe you've watched a thunderstorm roll in and felt a primal hunger for disaster, hoping it would shake up your life. That's called "lachesism." Or you were looking through old photos and felt a pang of nostalgia for a time you've never actually experienced. That's "anemoia."

If you've never heard of these terms before, that's because they didn't exist until John Koenig set out to fill the gaps in our language of emotion. _The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows_ "creates beautiful new words that we need but do not yet have," says John Green, bestselling author of _The Fault in Our Stars._ By turns poignant, relatable, and mind-bending, the definitions include whimsical etymologies drawn from languages around the world, interspersed with otherworldly collages and lyrical essays that explore forgotten corners of the human condition--from "astrophe," the longing to explore beyond the planet Earth, to "zenosyne," the sense that time keeps getting faster.

_The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows_ is for anyone who enjoys a shift in perspective, pondering the ineffable feelings that make up our lives. With a gorgeous package and beautiful illustrations throughout, this is the perfect gift for creatives, word nerds, and human beings everywhere.

### Author Biography

John Koenig is a video maker, voice actor, graphic designer, and writer. Born in Idaho and raised in Geneva, Switzerland, he created _The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows_ in 2009, first as a blog at DictionaryofObscureSorrows.com before expanding the project to YouTube. He lives in Minneapolis with his wife and daughter.

**Number of Pages:** 288

**Dimensions:** 0.9 x 7 x 5.2 IN

**Illustrated:** Yes

**Publication Date:** November 16, 2021

## Details

- **Price:** 24.0 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 24.00 USD | In stock |

## Images

- The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows - Hardcover

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