Last Word on First Names (Paperback)

For years you knew wha to expect from a baby-name book: a long, dull list of names with their dictionary definitions. All that changed with "Beyond Jennifer and Jason" -- the groundbreaking book on styles and trends in baby names that has been called "the best baby-naming book ever written" ( "The News Journal" ).

Now Rosenkrantz and Satran return with an all-new baby-name guide that is destined to become a classic. Like other books, it's packed with entries on girls' and boys' names from A to Z, but no one else gives you the inside story on names: why the world has all the Ashleys it needs, why everyone loves Emily, and why you should or should not call your son Ishmael. Drawing on sources as diverse as ancient myths, current TV series, the Bible, and world literature, "The Last Word on First Names" is a readable, witty, and illuminating guide to the real-world meaning of Miranda, Max, and thousands of other names from Abigail to Zelig. No one should name a baby without this book.