Kendall: The Man Who Made Lists

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Joshua C. Kendall, The Man Who Made Lists : Love, Death, Madness, and the Creation of Roget’s Thesaurus. New York : G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2008. 297 pages; illustrated.

Young Peter Roget's father died young and his mother had no coping skills. As a youngster, Peter made lists to cope with a dysfunctional family.

There were well-educated and well-placed relatives on his mother's side who helped Peter get a good education. When he practiced medicine in the slums of Manchester, England, he made lists to help him cope with the filth and ignorance.

His thesaurus went through many iterations and editions. Other author's were publishing their own list variations. He earned a good income from the Thesaurus. Put this book on your book list as it is an interesting biography.

-- Notes by EHL