Author Description

As Emerson once said, "By necessity, by proclivity--and by delight, we all quote." We quote from the Bible and from Shakespeare, from Churchill and Will Rogers, we quote to amuse our friends, to spice our conversation or our writing, to lend authority to what we say. We even quote without knowing whom we quote, saying "love conquers all" (Virgil, The Aeneid) or "damn with faint praise" (Pope, Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot).In this brand new edition of the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, you can find (and verify) classic quotes and little known gems--the words of the famous and the notorious, the witty and the wise--in a collection of over 9,000 quotations from more than 1,900 authors. Offering all the authority and accuracy of the fourth edition of the acclaimed Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, the Concise now contains 3,500 entries new to this edition, including recent quotes of the 1990s. This is a literary banquet, a feast of the finest excerpts of poets and novelists, essayists and historians. From Yeats ("A terrible beauty is born") to Orwell ("At 50, everyone has the face he deserves"), from the King James Bible ("Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall") to Marx ("From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs") this volume brims with essential quotes. Here too are the notable political figures of history, including Napoleon ("An army marches on it stomach"), Queen Elizabeth I ("I will make you shorter by a head"), and Harry Truman ("If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen"). Unceasingly entertaining for the general reader as well as a highly practical reference for study or speech-writing, this authoritative guide includes a useful keyword index, for tracing half-remembered quotations to their authors, or finding quotations on a particular subject.An ideal reference for any home or office library, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Quotations is a constant source of entertainment and inspiration for public speakers, writers, or anyone else who enjoys a sparkling line or a spirited reply.