Talking about books

Question 1

blurb

Answer 1

a short text on the back cover of a book, describing what the book is about

Question 2

poignant

Answer 2

moving and sad

Question 3

chronicle

Answer 3

description of a sequence of events

Question 4

acclaimed

Answer 4

praised by the public

Question 5

compelling

Answer 5

very interesting and engaging

Question 6

lugubrious

Answer 6

rather dark, mournful and gloomy

Question 7

macabre

Answer 7

often cruel or disgusting, concerned with death

Question 8

chilling

Answer 8

causing great fear

Question 9

page-turner

Answer 9

powerful story that keeps you interested

Question 10

insight

Answer 10

the ability to understand what something is really like

Question 11

gripping

Answer 11

so interesting or excitingthat it holds your attention totally

Question 12

enigmatic

Answer 12

mysterious

Question 13

breathtaking

Answer 13

amazing

Question 14

wry

Answer 14

in the face of a bad situation

Question 15

evocative

Answer 15

whiwh arouse memories or images

Question 16

eponymous

Answer 16

who has the same name as the title of the book

Question 17

protagonist

Answer 17

main character

Question 18

engaging

Answer 18

pleasant and interesting

Question 19

journal

Answer 19

written record of what you have done each day, publication containing academic articles, published at regular intervals

Question 20

memoirs

Answer 20

written record of a person’s own life, typically by a politician or military figure

Question 21

encyclopedia

Answer 21

book or set of books containing articles arranged in alphabetical order, dealing with the whole of human knowledge or part of it

Question 22

anthology

Answer 22

a collection of, for example, poems or short stories by different authors

Question 23

manual

Answer 23

is usually a technical book with instructions

Question 24

logbook

Answer 24

a book that records events, times…

Question 25

complsive reading

Answer 25

difficult to stop once you’ve started (formal)

Question 26

can’t put down

Answer 26

diffiult to stop reading once you’ve started (informal)

Question 27

informative

Answer 27

gives a lot of useful information

Question 28

ahead of its time

Answer 28

contained ideas that no one else had yet thought of or discussed at that time

Question 29

a product of it’s time

Answer 29

a reflection of that time

Question 30

lightweight

Answer 30

not complex; slightly negative connotation

Question 31

bedtime reading

Answer 31

nice to read in bed

Question 32

heavy going

Answer 32

difficult to read

Question 33

get into

Answer 33

become involved/engage with

Question 34

readership

Answer 34

number of people who read them