Quotations for Public Speakers: A Historical, Literary, and Political Anthology

Whether you are making a business presentation to a new client, speaking at a Little League banquet, or proposing a wedding toast, finding the right words with which to express yourself can be difficult. Even Mark Twain said, "It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech."

U.S. Senator Robert G. Torricelli has compiled a superlative anthology of more than two thousand quotations from nearly one thousand authors, selected to enhance your public speaking. Arranged under 50 categories and indexed by author, Quotations for Public Speakers is an easy-to-use reference guide you'll find yourself turning to time and again for creative and inspirational ways to express yourself and engage your audience.

Speakers vary from Albert Einstein ("Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.") to Wilt Chamberlain ("Nobody roots for Goliath."); from Anaïs Nin ("Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.") to Lena Horne ("You have to be taught second class; you're not born that way."); from Aristotle ("Liars, when they speak the truth are not believed.") to Aldous Huxley ("Consistency is contrary to nature, contrary to life. The only completely consistent people are dead."); from Barbra Streisand ("Art does not exist only to entertain, but also to challenge one to think, to provoke, even to disturb, in a constant search for truth.") to Woody Allen ("It's very hard to get your heart and head together in life. In my case, they're not even friendly.").

The scope of topics ranges from youth ("Children's talent to endure stems from their ignorance of alternatives," -- Maya Angelou) to old age ("I'm at an age where my back goes out more than I do,"-- Phyllis Diller); from justice ("Justice is truth in action," -- Benjamin Disraeli) to racism ("For racism to die, a totally different America must be born," -- Stokely Carmichael); from religion ("God's in his Heaven -- all's right with the world!" -- Robert Browning) to science ("We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about science and technology," -- Carl Sagan); from war ("War is evil, but often the lesser evil," -- George Orwell) to love ("There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved." -- George Sand)

Practical, enjoyable, and stimulating, this is a collection for every public speaker trying to inform and entertain.