Dimensions
128 x 197 x 17mm
Though associated with Cockney speech, rhyming slang has thrived in Australia from our earliest days as a colony. In DOG'S EYE AND DEAD HORSE (to translate: Pie and Sauce), Graham Seal celebrates the Aussie take on this earthy form of folk speech.
Beloved of criminals, and tending to reflect the bawdy, the seamy and the irreverent side of life, to glance through this collection of rhyming slang - put together over decades - is to touch on some fascinating history (Peggy Lee for three, after the American jazz singer) and some surprising whimsy, like make another for brother. And as the addition of Britney Spears (beers) goes to show, rhyming slang is still very much alive.
As well as a conventional A to Z organisation, this book groups the rhymes by themes: 'The body plus its functions, its adornments and its afflictions' has the most entries. As well as revealing the preoccupations of ordinary Australians over the years, this collection features many 'big' names - sporting greats, personalities of the stage and screen, and movers and shakers in society.
