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The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations

Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198607202
ISBN-13: 9780198607205
Released: 09 Sep 2004
RRP: £30.00
Average Rating:


Customer Reviews

An essential reference, but... - By: Mr. Nicholas J Robertson, 05 Apr 2008
I would not be without this reference book, & enjoy an occasional "flick through" it to read the erudite, profound or witty sayings or writings of men & women from throughout history to the present day, not to mention some anonymous ones, advertising slogans & catchphrases. The first quoted may be Homer, from the 8th Century BC, although some verses from the bible are probably the oldest expressions listed.

I find it less successful when I am trying to identify who it was who first used an expression or saying, but this must inevitably be the case. While biased towards the English language - there are 50 pages of Shakespeare's alone - there are quotations from the whole world, & even in 850 pages or so (the index occupies another 300 pages) no one can realisticallly include more than a smalll proportion.

I do wonder, therefore, why the editors include the Latin as well as the English translations of those quotations that originated in that language, but not, generallly, the French, German or other foreign langauges of others.

While Wikipedia & the internet is a valuable resource as well, this is not a book that you will ever regret buying.
A must for all writers - By: Brian Levine, 29 Jul 2007
Its very size is comforting: my old one was becoming dog-eared so I invested in a new one. I find it difficult to believe there aren't more reviews of this because I would have thought it almost essential for anyone writing a book, screenplay, article, short story or speech, especiallly for material out of copyright.

Yes, the internet can be useful but is rarely authoritative. This is. If you're serious about the creation of literary works in whatever form, avoid this at your peril...
A quote!! A quote!! My kingdom for a quote!! - By: , 01 Jan 2006
This is the most amazing collection of quotations I have got my hands on. Look up quotes by keywords, by the authors or partial phrase if you only sort of know how it goes but want to read the whole quote.
Worth every penny & it will be a long time getting through it!