A brilliant and personal literary journey, in which Philip Dodd tells the curious tales of people whose names-deliberately or by chance-became household words.
What's in a name? For Philip Dodd, this question led to an international tour, sleuthing the history of some of our most intriguing eponyms. The result is a collection of surprising, stranger-than-fiction stories from history, the arts, the halls of science, and sometimes simply the realm of serendipity. This armchair traveler's delight contains little-known tales of such immortal figures as:
Roy Jacuzzi, alive and well and still bubbling with ideas in Happy Valley, California.
Joseph P. Frisbie, the baker whose pie tins inspired Wham-O's ubiquitous flying disc.
Ernst Gräfenberg, for whom the G-spot was named.
Samuel Maverick, the Texas pioneer who refused to brand his calves.
And many other colorful figures.
From Belgium to Buenos Aires, from Orlando to Los Angeles, Dodd's readers go along for the ride. What's in a Name? is a marvelous tribute to people who changed our language-whether through hard work, creativity, or the luck of the draw.
