Book Review: Wordwatching

“Without the law, you can’t have society. But without the arts, you can’t have civilisation”. I recall hearing Julian Burnside QC make that statement when I was watching him on Talking Heads (ABC Television, March 2008), in reference to the power of art. It is a very interesting observation as to the relative historical importance of the law and the arts. It is also one that I think gives an insight into the man. Since Julian Burnside also works in a profession where words are the tools of trade, it is, perhaps, not surprising that he would write a book such as Wordwatching.

Wordwatching is presented in fifty six essays on different subjects with titles as diverse as Collective Nouns, Deadly Sins, Doublespeak, Irony, Legal Words, Oxymoron and Wistful.

That the book is written by a lawyer should not dissuade the reader for fear that it will read like an Act. In Wordwatching, Burnside QC observes that “[w]ords have power”, and in it he displays his mastery over the power of words in delivering an interesting and thoroughly enjoyable excursion through the English language.

When a senior junior posed a question at the recent Bar Association conference as to what the noun for an assemblage of barristers was, it reminded me that my review of this book was outstanding. The answer depends on the collective referred to: it is a subtlety of senior counsel (the reference being to sergeants-at law); and an eloquence of lawyers. Out of interest, a sentence is the collective noun for judges.

A great book. Highly recommended.