“The Critic’s Notebook,” by the Editors

“The Critic’s Notebook,” by the Editors

Nonfiction: Bookish Words & Their Surprising Stories, by David Crystal (Bodleian Library Publishing, June 20): What’s your favorite boc? Originally, the Old English word that has since become our “book” referred to any written text, including legal documents, catalogues, or charters. And rather than a library, English speakers once spoke of a boc-hord, or a “book hoard,” which may be the more accurate term for the less organized among us. This a…