The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations (Hardcover)

~ Elizabeth Knowles (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations is as impressive, erudite, enjoyable, and educational a tome as you might expect from Oxford. It's the sort of undertaking the press does very well. The first such dictionary, as compiled by Oxford, was published in 1953, and it's been tweaking, modifying, and updating it ever since. This new edition, the fifth, offers well over 20,000 quotations from more than 3,000 authors. Responding to correspondence from their readers, Oxford has restored some material from past editions, such as the proverbs and nursery-rhymes section. There's a much more inclusive attention to sacred texts of world religions, and 2,000 quotations are brand new.

The quotations are arranged alphabetically, by author, so browsing provides insight into the authors quoted, more so than do compendiums that are organize by theme. There is also, however, a full thematic index, starting with Administration, Age, and America, and running the alphabetical gamut through to War, Weather, and Youth. And that is followed by a 283-page comprehensive keyword index. If you needed to fault Oxford with something, it might be the small print, but it certainly wouldn't be the thoroughness or cross-referenceability.

There's Kingsley Amis on hangovers ("His mouth had been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum") and the sexes ("Women are really much nicer than men. No wonder we like them"). There's Woody Allen on immortality ("I don't want to achieve immortality through my work--I want to achieve it through not dying") and Fred Allen on committees ("A group of men who individually can do nothing but as a group decide that nothing can be done"). Spiro T. Agnew is on record as saying, "If you've seen one city slum you've seen them all." And Konrad Adenauer weighs in with "A thick skin is a gift from God."

There are pages of special categories, such as one of advertising slogans ("Let your fingers do the walking," "It's finger-licking good," and "Beanz meanz Heinz") and three pages of last words ("God will pardon me, it is His trade," from Heinrich Heine; "If this is dying, then I don't think much of it," by Lytton Strachey; and "It's been so long since I've had champagne," by Anton Chekhov). And there are pages of film lines, misquotations, epitaphs, telegrams, and toasts, too. Oxford's Dictionary of Quotations is a wonderfully reliable and inclusive quotation reference, and it's a lot of fun, as well. --Stephanie Gold

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up. This revised edition is based on the 1979 edition and The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations (1991). It contains 17,500 quotations from 2500 authors, including more non-English writers, thinkers, and public figures than previous Oxford collections, and provides more substantial representation of American figures, more quotes from non-literary fields, and revisits the lyrics of hymns and songs, which were purged from the 1979 edition. Despite all of this, the focus is strongly British, e.g., 10 pages devoted to Samuel Johnson, 171 to Shakespeare, while Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson get about a page each, and that wonderful quotable Cervantes, less than a page. Entries are arranged alphabetically by name, and include dates and a brief identification whenever possible. The print is small, but the typeface and layout are attractive and easy to use. There are features not usually found in such dictionaries, such as the inclusion of some excerpts from secondary sources about the author of a quote, and, in those cases in which the quotation was not originally written in English, presentation is in the original language followed by a translation. Brief appendixes touch on "Sayings of the 90s," "Popular Misquotations," and slogans. The Oxford's closest contender may be the 16th edition of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (Little, Brown, 1992), that is very similar in scope (20,000 quotations representing 2550 authors) but appears to have more cultural breadth. The Oxford is recommended for libraries that have a demand for quotations, particularly those of British origin.?Tess McKellen, Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1152 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 5 edition (November 25, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198601735
• ISBN-13: 978-0198601739
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.1 x 2.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #271,661 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best choice for Brits, October 7, 2003

By	Dennis Littrell (SoCal) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

The question for most people looking to purchase a book of quotations is whether to get Bartlett's Familiar Quotations or The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations. So perhaps it would be a good idea to compare them and see which might better meet your needs.

Both are important works of reference; both are authoritative. Bartlett's latest edition, the 17th is from 2002 while this, the latest Oxford, is from 1999 with a reprint with corrections from 2001. So both are relatively up to date. Bartlett's is a slightly larger book with perhaps 300 more pages; however the number of actual quotations is not that different. Both books quote over 3,000 authors and contain over 20,000 quotations.

The most significant difference between them, to my mind, is that in the Oxford, English authors are favored both in terms of number included and entries by, which is to be expected since the Oxford is an British publication while Bartlett's is an American publication. A quick check shows that British mathematician and philosopher Bertram Russell, for example, has more entries in the Oxford than he does in Bartlett's, whereas both Mark Twain and the Baltimore sage, H. L. Mencken, have more entries in Bartlett's than they do in the Oxford. France's Voltaire commands just about the same space in either book.

The next most important difference is that the quotations are presented alphabetically by author in the Oxford while Bartlett's presents them chronologically beginning with the oldest. Both sources give author's dates. Personally I find the alphabetical arrangement preferable because it often saves me a trip to the alphabetical "Index of Authors" in Bartlett's that I have to make before finding the author I am interested in. When one is looking for a quote by keyword, which often happens, Bartlett's is slightly to be preferred. Its Index is definitely longer (accounting for most of the difference in length between the books) and it is more extensively cross-referenced. In looking up Marx's "From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs" I found the quote in the Oxford from the keywords "according," "abilities," and "needs." In Bartlett's "according" did not work, but "each," "abilities," and "needs" did. So that was a standoff. However I found the Golden Rule and its source in Bartlett's without any trouble by looking under "Golden Rule" and under "do unto." In the Oxford neither "Golden Rule" nor "do unto" were in the Index of keywords. Both books give Matthew 7:12 as the source.

The Oxford has a slightly more international approach to religious texts. There is a little less of the Bible here, but more of the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Koran, and other non-Christian texts, except for the Tao Te Ching from Lao Tzu where Bartlett's has 34 entries to 19 for the Oxford.

Another feature that the Oxford has that will be handy for some is its "Special Categories" which are "Advertising Slogans" (mostly for products sold in the UK), "Misquotations," "Newspaper Headlines and Leaders," "Political Slogans and Songs," and fifteen more. These are text boxes appearing alphabetically among the quotations. Curiously they give the rather staid Oxford reputation a bit of a colloquial feel that may surprise some people.

So how to choose between these two very excellent works of reference? I like them both and if I had to part with either, I would reluctantly let the Oxford go. However if I were English I would part with Bartlett's and keep the Oxford. I really think they are that close in quality. For a secondary consideration, I would prefer the Oxford since its slightly smaller size is a bit handier, especially when balanced on one's chest as one reads in bed!

Bottom line: no serious writer (especially of literature, culture and history) should be without either this or Bartlett's. Next to a dictionary a book of quotations is my most consulted work of reference. To solve the dilemma, I recommend that you splurge and get them both!

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ********** TEN STARS!, September 6, 2005

By	Penny Dreadful (Under Your Skin) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations (Hardcover)

Who said what, when and for what reason? If it's been said, written, shouted, exclaimed or moaned in a breathy sigh, you'll find it recorded here. Three-thousand years worth of quotes from everyone who has ever been anyone: generals, saints, writers, actors, politicians, judges, criminals, heroes, the infamous, the dying, the triumphant, the fictional and the mythical. In this magnficent volume you can search either by an individual name and see all listings for that person, or by subject, and see all recorded passages about whatever topic you wish to investigate. Great for public speakers, students, writers, or lovers of wit, excoriation, or profundity, and absolutely deserving of the word "Encyclopedia" in its title.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Cornerstone of Your Quotations Collection, February 22, 2001

By	Sir Charles Panther "Life is hard. It's hard... (Alexandria, Virginny, USandA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Far and away the best dictionary of quotations. If you are to buy only one dictionary of quotations, make it this one. An essential resource for the individual, home, and office. Wonderfully varied sources, from the Bible and Koran, from modern times and antiquity, from English and foreign sources. It is very easy to use, intuitive, with succinct and clear instructions. The organization of the dictionary is also simple and straightforward, with alphabetical organization by source/author and major themes. The dictionary portion of the book is also broken up well with boxed special sections, addressing such subjects as advertising slogans, last words, misquotations, sayings and slogans, toasts, etc.

The dictionary has a comprehensive (283 pages) keyword index. If you can't find your subject/theme/author/source/concept/first line here, it's not in the book.

There is also a very disappointing "Selective Thematic Index." The idea is excellent, but the execution is poor. There are not nearly enough themes (44) offered for this dictionary spanning 841 pages. Furthermore, entries in the selective thematic index and keyword index have not been reconciled. For example, "Administration" in the thematic index yields 17 entries, while the keyword index lists only two.

Taken as a book for reading and consumption, it is fascinating, even if a bit dense. There are gems on just about every page, insights into history, people, the sources' thoughts and movitavtions. Spurs to the reader's contemplation abound. Admittedly, slogging through 41 pages of quotations from the Bible, 21 pages of proverbs, or 51 pages of Shakespeare can be daunting. But then you will stumble upon the incredible "We should therefore claim, in the name of tolerance, the right not to tolerate the intolerant" from Austrian-born philosopher Karl Popper (587).

I heartily recommend this superb reference and enjoyable read.