The Deorhord: An Old English Bestiary

Hana Videen has been hoarding Old English words since 2013, when she began tweeting one a day. Now over 28,000 people follow for these daily gems from her wordhord. Following her Old English doctorate at King's College London, she is now a writer and blogger in Canada, translating curiosities of history into engaging narratives. Find her on Twitter at @OEWordhord

This beautiful, fascinating book casts a warm light on the rich and tangled roots of the English language, and the human fascination with animals in the natural world. Hana Videen's The Deorhord is a treasure trove.
For amateur etymologists, armchair philologists and compulsive readers of histories, The Deorhord will set hearts fizzing with joy.
A beautifully written reminder of the magical and the mystical - a glimpse back in time that uses extraordinary creatures to capture the reader's imagination.
Immensely absorbing ... a wonderful window to see our familiar words and ideas in new ways that cover them in curious colours.
A treasure trove that the lexicographer Susie Dent might be tempted to plunder
Videen is an excellent guide to lost lore ... her endlessly fascinating book is chock-full of archival detective stories
For lovers of words and animals alike, this is a book to be devoured with the voracity of the draca (dragon)
A wonderful way into Old English, opening windows on a lost world that shaped ours and still lives within it.
The Deorhord has treasures aplenty for animal lovers and curious minds.
Delightful
As fun as it is fascinating and deeply researched ... For lovers of language, animals, or history, Videen's Deorhord contains much that will charm and delight.
Absolutely captivating
Praise for The Wordhord :A marvelous book
Wonderful
A lovely, lovely read
Splendid
Eminently giftable
Entertaining and absolutely fascinating
Delightful ... a classy gift to the commonly word-drunk
A passionate medievalist and a relaxed, lucid writer; the pleasure she takes in her subject is infectious
A treasure trove ... and beautifully designed
A lively linguistic history