{"product_id":"shaggy-dogs-and-black-sheep","title":"Shaggy Dogs and Black Sheep","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlbert Jack's \u003ci\u003eShaggy Dogs and Black Sheep \u003c\/i\u003eis a compulsively readable, highly enlightening look at the phrases we use all the time but rarely consider.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  The English language is crammed with colourful phrases and sayings that we use without thinking every day. It's only when we're asked who smart Alec or Holy Moly were, where feeling 'in the pink' or 'once in a blue moon' come from, or even what letting the cat out of the bag really means that we realize that there's far more to English than we might have thought.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  Luckily enough, we now have Albert Jack. And rather than resting on his laurels after the enormous success of \u003ci\u003eRed Herrings and White Elephants\u003c\/i\u003e, he has continued his search around the world, exploring the origins of hundreds more phrases. The fascinating stories he has uncovered come from the rich traditions of the navy, army and law to confidence tricksters and highwaymen, from the practices of ancient civilizations to Music Hall and pubs. Determined to chase each shaggy dog story to the bitter end, his discoveries are even stranger and more memorable this time round. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  From the skin of your teeth to the graveyard shift - you'll never speak (or even think) English in the same way again.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cb\u003eAlbert Jack \u003c\/b\u003ehas become something of a publishing phenomenon, clocking up hundreds of thousands of sales with his series of bestselling adventures tracing the fantastic stories behind everyday phrases (\u003ci\u003eRed Herrings and White Elephants\u003c\/i\u003e), the world's great mysteries (\u003ci\u003eLoch Ness Monsters and Raining Frogs\u003c\/i\u003e) and nursery rhymes (\u003ci\u003ePop Goes the Weasel\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Penguin Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54221588595032,"sku":"9780141039565","price":19.99,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0278\/1295\/4195\/files\/9780141039565.jpg?v=1764394232","url":"https:\/\/agendabookshop.com\/products\/shaggy-dogs-and-black-sheep","provider":"Agenda Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}