P.M. BRIEFING : French Err on Deadly Fungus
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PARIS — A deadly toadstool/mushroom mix-up has prompted Larousse, the world’s leading publisher of French dictionaries, to recall 180,000 volumes of this year’s color edition. “It’s a slight detail that could be fatal to readers, especially when mushroom season starts,” spokeswoman Fabienne Jacob said today.
A miscaptioned photograph in the 1990 color edition of the Petit Larousse dictionary, sold in Belgium, Canada, Switzerland and France since July, labeled a deadly fungus “harmless” and a harmless mushroom “deadly.”
Jacob said the mistake--discovered by alert readers--was the most serious technical error ever made by Larousse.
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