Whitehorse Manningham Libraries

In 1901, the word bondmaid was discovered missing from the Oxford English Dictionary. This is the story of the girl who stole it. Motherless and irrepressibly curious, Esme spends her childhood in the Scriptorium, a garden shed in Oxford where her father and a team of lexicographers are gathering words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. Over time, Esme realises that some words are considered more important than others, and that words and meanings relating to women’s experiences often go unrecorded. She begins to collect words for another dictionary: The Dictionary of Lost Words.
About the author: Pip was born in London, grew up in Sydney and now calls the Adelaide Hills home. She is co-author of the book Time Bomb: Work Rest and Play in Australia Today and One Italian Summer, a memoir of her family’s travels in search of the good life.
The Fragments: When the beautiful, reclusive Inga Karlson died in a fire in New York in 1939, she left behind three things: a phenomenally successful first novel, the scorched fragments of a second book and a mystery that has captivated generations of fans. Nearly half a century later one of those fans, Brisbane bookseller Caddie Walker, will be jolted from her sleepy, no-worries life, as she is driven to find the clues that will unlock the greatest literary mystery of the twentieth century.
About the author: Toni Jordan has worked as a molecular biologist, quality control chemist, TAB operator and door-to-door aluminium siding salesperson, and is the author of five novels.

A Zoom invite will be emailed to registered participants at least one hour prior to the session. If you have not received the link at least one hour before the scheduled start please phone any branch during opening hours.