The Wheel is Spinning but the Hamster is Dead: The perfect gift for language lovers & book obsessives this Christmas!

by Adam Sharp

Overview

Know your tater trap from your sniffle herring in Sharp's journey around the world in idioms, proverbs and general nonsense — the perfect gift for Christmas

'Brilliant, hilarious fun from a master wordsmith — you will LOVE this book' Kit de Waal
'Extremely entertaining and very useful for new insults' Russell Kane
'Utter genius' Marian Keyes
'Brilliant' Brian Bilston

Join wordsmith Adam Sharp as he journeys around the world in idioms, proverbs and general nonsense. Learn unusual insults from France (You are a potato with the face of a guinea pig), how to hurry someone up in the US (You're going as slow as molasses in January) and what they call a shark in Vietnam (fat fish).

Full of fascinating, ridiculous and hilarious translations from around the world, Adam has rounded up the very best of what every corner of the globe has to offer.

Let's get this show on the road! Or:
Let's saddle the chickens! (German)
On with the butter! (Icelandic)
Forward with the goat! (Dutch)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781398715929
Publisher:	Orion Publishing Group
Publication date:	07/14/2026
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.27(w) x 7.87(h) x (d)

About the Author

Adam is originally from Manchester but has moved around often (he's not very good at staying still). He has lived in: London, Melbourne, Sydney, Queensland, The Channel Islands, The Canary Islands, Nashville, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Adam has had over thirty jobs (he's not a very loyal employee, either). He has been paid to: Teach sport in kindergartens, serve sandwiches in casinos, catch footballs, juggle bottles, wash dishes, review music, change nappies, walk on stilts.

For more lists and to stay in touch with Adam, you can find him on Twitter and TikTok @adamcsharp.