"I am sometimes asked how to get a "handle" on Newfoundland. The best route is simply to visit for a good while. The second best, and not as subject to the inclemencies and sadism of Torbay's volatile weather, is to visit the Dictionary of Newfoundland English . . . the finest, most scholarly (and enjoyable) compendium of Newfoundlandia that there is.

"It's been thirty years since its first publication, and its appeal only deepens with time. It is a veritable house of being of the Newfoundland way. Just thought I would take this opportunity to waken people to the presence of this wonderful book."

Rex Murphy is a Canadian commentator and author, primarily on Canadian political and social matters. He is a frequent presence on CBC Television and Radio, and a columnist in the National Post.