Does absence really make the heart grow fonder? Can beggars be choosers? Is it always better late than never? In An Apple A Day, Caroline Taggart explores the truth behind our favourite proverbs, their history and whether they offer any genuine help to the recipient. Did you know that the Old Testament has an entire book devoted to proverbs? Or that ‘a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush’ is a proverb from falconry that dates back to the Middle Ages? Light-hearted but authoritative, this nifty little book is the perfect stocking filler for Christmas.

How did George Eliot’s love life affect her prose? Why did Kafka write at three in the morning? In what ways is Barack Obama like Eliza Doolittle? Can you be over-dressed for the Oscars? What is Italian Feminism? Is Date Movie the worst film ever made? In Changing My Mind, Zadie Smith, author of the awardwinning White Teeth (Penguin. PB. $24.95) and On Beauty (Penguin. PB. $24.95), casts an acute eye over material both personal and cultural. The pieces – some published here for the first time – reveal her as a passionate and precise essayist, equally at home in the world of great books and bad movies, family and philosophy, British comedians and Italian divas.

Since the first edition of this influential guide to the English language was published in 1926, the shortest and best answer to any dispute over the use of prepositions, split infinitives and word usage has been ‘look it up in Fowler’. Later editions toned down the prescriptive nature of the famous lexicographer’s work: some of Fowler’s famously dry humour was removed, along with the idiosyncratic, opinionated voice that gave the book its charm. Freshly evaluating the place of Fowler in linguistic studies, this reissue of the classic first edition includes an enlightening introduction by language expert David Crystal, who also provides notes on around 300 entries, highlighting the linguistic changes that have occurred since 1926.

This unique two-volume work is the world’s first historical thesaurus. Compiled over 40 years by a dedicated team of scholars within the English Language Department of the University of Glasgow, it takes almost every word in the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary and maps them on to a vast classification structure, so that words with similar meaning are grouped together. In addition, words are also arranged according to their history: oldest words appear first, while those that have entered the language most recently are shown last. An essential reference for scholars, language professionals and anyone interested in language, history and culture.

In Conversation reproduces interviews with 39 international writers conducted by the editor of The Monthly magazine, Ben Naparstek. Some interviews were conducted face-to-face while Naparstek lived in the US, some took place over the phone when he was back in Melbourne, and five were held via translators and email. The interviews are divided into fiction and non-fiction writers, leading off with literary lion Paul Auster and closing with English literary critic and author James Wood. Presented as insightful and illuminating author profiles rather than Q&As, Naparstek’s book reminds us of the work great writers such as Toni Morrison, Jay McInerney, Tobias Wolff, Rick Moody and Umberto Eco have produced, and inspires by providing fascinating glimpses into the different life paths each writer has followed.

Long before we had Google, the ODQ was there to help answer those niggling ‘who said that?’ questions. This major new edition of the home library stalwart is the seventh to be printed since 1941, and its coverage has been extended to include around 1000 new quotations from print and online sources. A thorough review of classic works also expands the coverage of quotations from the past, and extensive and detailed sourcing is provided for each quotation. From Peter Abelard (c. 1142), ‘For we do not easily expect evil of those whom we love most’, to Émile Zola (d. 1902), ‘J’accuse’, there are more than 20,000 quotations from more than 3500 authors and a comprehensive index to help those looking for a half-remembered line.

Running amok from argy-bargy to zany, linguist Christopher Moore delves into the mysteries of the English race by focusing on the endlessly diverting inventiveness of their language. Balderdash, load of cobblers, humbug, naff – the English language is riddled with hidden meanings and traps for the unwary, and according to Moore it’s currently undergoing a transformation as rapid as that of Shakespeare’s era, when 30,000 new words were coined. The A to Z entries in this entertaining little book cover a range of topics, including the importance of chips in the national diet and the link between Oxbridge and the old school tie.

Sniffing one another’s breath in Polynesia, sticking out your tongue in Tibet, patting each other’s behinds in New Guinea, rubbing noses in New Zealand, exchanging air-kisses in LA – this engaging book studies the many welcoming and farewelling gestures, customs, behaviours and forms of address found around the globe. From the 12 types of Japanese bow and the Chinese kowtow to the various handshakes and kissing of hands, cheeks and lips we encounter, Lundmark reveals the cultural, historical and sociological impulses behind this most basic of human interactions. Filled with little-known facts and witty asides, his thought-provoking and entertaining little book will make you think twice about your telephone manner, hat-doffing technique and choice of everyday greetings.

Ayto has revised and updated one of the world’s best-loved reference books, adding 1500 new articles, including words and phrases.

Since the Macquarie Dictionary was first published in 1981, its reputation as Australia’s national dictionary has gone from strength to strength. It is now nationally and internationally regarded as the standard reference on Australian English. A comprehensive and up-to-date account of our variety of English, it not only includes all those words and senses peculiar to Australian English, but also those common to the whole English-speaking world. Also available: Macquarie Concise Dictionary: Fifth Edition (HB. $50).

Since the Macquarie Dictionary was first published in 1981, its reputation as Australia’s national dictionary has gone from strength to strength. It is now nationally and internationally regarded as the standard reference on Australian English. A comprehensive and up-to-date account of our variety of English, it not only includes all those words and senses peculiar to Australian English, but also those common to the whole English-speaking world. Also available: Macquarie Concise Dictionary: Fifth Edition (HB. $50).

Have you ever considered reading the Oxford English Dictionary? It’s 20 volumes and weighs 62 kg – so perhaps not. But now there is no need, since veteran dictionary reader Ammon Shea has read it for you, and ferreted out the best of it. You can now discover the meaning of ‘mysophobia’ (an irrational fear of being dirty), ‘sesquihoral’ (something that lasts an hour and a half), and congratulate chefs on their ‘gramaungere’ (a superb or great meal). Do you ‘balter’? (dance clumsily). Are you ready for anything? (you’re ‘panurgic’). If so, you won’t need a ‘salvo’ – an intentionally bad excuse – for what you might otherwise have wanted to get out of! Filled with arcane and undeservedly forgotten words, this is one for enthusiasts for the English language.

Unpick glib aphorisms and root out cliché with the author of the bestselling The Pig That Wants to be Eaten (Granta. PB. $24.95).

Here, collected in one volume, are Lauder’s groundbreaking studies of Australian speech.

This lavishly illustrated history of the book draws on the rare collections held by the State Library of Victoria for its content. Highlighting the collectability of beautiful and rare books, Cowley and Williamson reflect on the unique place of books in our lives, as transmitters of our shared cultural memory and as touchstones on our life journey. Starting with illuminated manuscripts, the book moves on to Gutenberg’s Bible and other early examples of printing. Also included are the scientific and political books that changed the world, from Darwin and Freud to Marx and Greer, works of literature that captured the imagination, the gloriously trashy covers of pulp fiction and examples of bookbinders’ and book designers’ artistry.