As an asthmatic child, often confined to the bed, Member of Parliament from Kerala and writer Dr Shashi Tharoor often took to the comfort provided by books. This was in the era of fewer distractions. There was no television, mobile phone, PlayStation, or the Internet. "They [books] were my entertainment, my escape and my education. I would read copiously and indiscriminately," he shares. When he came across the same words in different books and in various contexts, he quickly learned "how they are used, their meanings and nuances". "As a result, my vocabulary naturally expanded," Tharoor adds, in an email interview.

His new book, Tharoorosaurus (Penguin Random House), where he shares 53 examples from his vocabulary and from every alphabet, is a tribute to Tharoor's everlasting preoccupation with unusual words. It's also a rare treat from the Sahitya Akademi-winning author, who, for a change, has steered away from his academic and historical pursuits to pen a book that can be enjoyed by both kids and adults. "I have been fascinated with words, but not for their own sake—rather for what they can convey or evoke. I have always maintained a strong reading habit, reading extensively and widely, and my vocabulary has certainly been a byproduct. Yes, it is true that I have sometimes playfully used a rather obscure or complicated word during some of my tweets, such as the one where I announced the arrival of my new book at the time, The Paradoxical Prime Minister, floccinaucinihilipilification. But that has mostly been just fun and not necessarily a reflection of the way I regularly speak or write," he says.