If you've ever wondered whether familiar terms like "a pride of lions" or "a string of ponies" were only the tip of the linguistic iceberg, An Exaltation of Larks provides a definitive answer. This classic collection of collective nouns includes more than 1,100 equally pithy, and often poetic, terms - some resurrected from the Books of Venery that were the constant study of fifteen-century gentlemen; some ("a blur of Impressionists," "a score of bachelors") more recently minted. Here too is a game for readers inspired to invent their own terms of venery. Infectious in spirit and beautifully illustrated with more than 250 witty engravings, An Exaltation of Larks is a word-lover's garden of delights.