I always wondered how speakers knew all those quotations. Now I know. They check "Barltett's Quotations."

This book consists of an extensive collection of thousands of familiar quotations from hundreds of sources spanning the history of the world. Biblical books, literary works, historical figures, authors, politicians, religious figures and even the anonymous all contribute to this vast collection.

The collection is assembled by source, listed, more or less, chronologically. The book contains two indices. In the front, the reader finds the Index by Authors. After the quotations, we find a general index of topics. For each listing in the general index, we find the lead word as a heading with the citation for each lead word with the words which follow it in the quotation.

I have found this book to be a valuable resource on many occasions. Just reading through it educates the reader to the source of many sayings with which we are familiar. When I have been searching my brain for the particular phrase, I have often found it in "Bartlett's". When looking for a witty phrase with which to liven a speech, "Bartlett's" often comes in handy.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone who needs a source for quotations for speeches, writings, or just to satisfy your own curiosity.

"It is a good thing for an uneducated man to read books of quotations. Bartlett's 'Familiar Quotations' is an admirable work, and I studied it intently." Sir Winston Churchill (1930) Sir Winston does a remarkable job of "reviewing" "FQ", and 5 pages of his own words are contained within (the aforementioned quote is on page 619 in this edition). There are over 50 pages of Shakespeare, as well. The index is superb, one can find quotes appropriate for speeches, letters, and personal enjoyment with ease. Bravo John Bartlett!

I'm a politician and frequently prepare speeches and articles that are meant to persuade or provide appropriate commentary. Bartlett's is indespensible if your style accomodates the quoting of others. For those moments when I must mark events (Memorial Day) or meet an expectation of seriousness I find Bartlett's to be an excellent source for just the right phrase.

This is a massive reference book, which is good in and of itself. Where Bartlett's really shines is in it's organization. Quotes in the body are arranged chronologically and by author. The index is superb, with quotes locatable by subject and author. For most topics, the writer will be confronted with multiple quotes from which to choose which best illustrates the heft and value of this tome.

My only criticism, which has been noted by other commentators, is that this latest edition does seem to be moderately invaded by political correctness. For example, the quotes selected to characterize Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher almost seem to be designed to belittle their historic contributions and commentary -- while much more historic and significant utterances are ignored (missing for example are "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," or any of Reagan's wonderful D-Day commemmoration speech). I personnally find this annoying because my need for quotes does run to the political. One also gets the sneaky suspicion that some of the newer entries were inserted for reasons other than the significance or value of the quote.

That said however, the book is an excellent resource. It is rich, covering almost any topic you may want to highlight and reaches back to beyond biblical times for quotable utterances. A must for any reference library.