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Title: The Penguin Book of Twentieth Century Speeches by Brian Macarthur ISBN: 0140285008 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.43
Rating: 5
Summary: History made interesting
Comment: I picked up this book for couple of speeches I was particularly interested in and wanted to have a reference - in printed form. Never imagined I would find it so interesting, not just in terms of the brilliance of each individual speech, but also the way speeches have been chosen and connect with each other. Brief synopsis of the background to the issue, followed by counter-speeches in same context give you a good lesson in history. Even if containing only one side of the story - or facts not stated, it makes a great read - cover to cover.
Yes, I wish some obscure ones (eg clinton apologizing..) etc are deleted and instead great speeches from other parts of the world - China, Russia etc included.
Rating: 4
Summary: One picture of history, not the only one
Comment: This is a compilation of some very important speeches from the twentieth century, and some not so important ones. The author has chosen speeches mainly from the Western world, especially the United States and Great Britain. Most of the orators are men (need that be pointed out?:)) Naturally, this has the consequence that the result is a very incomplete picture. Bearing that in mind, however, there are some really good speeches here, and some very interesting. Reading this book is like reading a book on recent history.
Since these texts are authentic speeches, you actually get the feeling of being THERE. Reading some speeches really gave me an idea of how it made the listeners feel ... and sometimes, that was a rather creepy feeling. There are some really thought-provoking speeches in this book, such as one of my favourites: what will happen when we start use planes to bomb entire cities? The speech is called "The bomber will always get through" and the orator was Stanley Baldwin. Most of us are so young that we do not remember a world where wars were fought differently; when that option did not exist.
Each speech has a short introduction where the orator is placed in his or her context, and often, at the end, a few lines about what happened next. The speeches are chronologically arranged, not thematically. Whereas these introductions are of a high quality, they are not sufficient for a reader who is not rather well acquainted with the history of the Western world of the 20th century. If that is the case, I would recommend to read a general introduction first.
This book focuses clearly on political speeches, although there are exceptions. Students of political science will undoubtedly find it useful as a general companion book, but it is interesting for anyone who is interested in the recent political development. These speeches are not the only factors that have influenced that development, but orators often pick up current trends and issues, even before television.
I recommend this book with the caution that it does not give a full picture, it does not even aim to give a full picture and reading this book solely would give anyone a very strange idea about the history of the 20th century in the Western world. Read it with other books, and do not take this as THE truth ... it is a good and interesting read, provided you have a good portion of healthy criticism.
Rating: 4
Summary: Good, but not representative
Comment: This book has excellent speeches - from the famous personalities (Kennedy and Churchill) and the infamous ones(Hitler and other Nazis). However, almost all speeches are from America and Europe and including several rather mediocre speeches of rather obscure personalities. For instance there are no speeches from orators in Russia. Just because Russia was the enemy during the cold war does not mean they were short of orators. And the number of speeches of African and Asian statesmen are so few that it is almost disrespectful.
Good book, but could have been much better.
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Title: Lend Me Your Ears: Great Speeches in History by William Safire ISBN: 0393040054 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: 1997 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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Title: The Penguin Book of Historic Speeches by Brian MacArthur ISBN: 0140176195 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 1997 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: The Lost Art of the Great Speech: How to Write One--How to Deliver It by Richard Dowis ISBN: 0814470548 Publisher: AMACOM Pub. Date: 2000 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Great American Speeches (Library of Freedom) by Gregory R. Suriano, John G. Hunt ISBN: 0517091178 Publisher: Crescent Books Pub. Date: 1993 List Price(USD): $8.99 |
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Title: Writing Great Speeches: Professional Techniques You Can Use (Part of the Essence of Public Speaking Series) by Alan M. Perlman ISBN: 0205273009 Publisher: Allyn & Bacon Pub. Date: 09 September, 1997 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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