If you want to know what you really mean when you talk about calling the shots, look no further than Sabre Prattling.
Even for someone with a military background, Sabre Prattling has the capacity to surprise. I thought I was clued in about brass monkeys, for example, but the book succinctly disabused me of a long-cherished belief.
Andrew Rigsby’s book is a light-hearted, easily readable canter through phrases one hears every day at home and at work, used as a kind of jargon to give narratives punch, impact and even a hint of machismo. Most of them are rooted in military terminology of bygone eras.
So, next time you are blown away or think a colleague is going off at half cock, rather than shooting from the hip have a look at this entertaining and informative work before putting your head above the parapet.