The only quotation dictionary you need buy, with over 17,000 quotations drawn from the Collins database and The Times archive of quotations.

Why does one enjoy reading quotations? Is it because we seek inspiration in the words of others? Is it to share in the philosophising of a higher intellect's wisdom? Is it because we simply want to laugh at a witty remark? It is for all these reasons and more. Not only poets and philosophers capture the thinking of our time but, in modern times, it is politicians, television presenters, pop stars, footballers and anyone who is in the limelight for five minutes or more. As Philip Howard states in his introduction, 'Words are man's defining characteristic and our only true immortality.'

From the topical (including a large selection from the high points of the Times Quotes of the Week) to the classical, the Times Book of Quotations is the definitive reference. It includes Socrates and Irvine Welsh on consumerism, Tony Blair and Al Capone on crime, and Shakespeare and Rod Stewart on sex.

Thematically arranged, supported by comprehensive yet straightforward indexing, and newly revised and updated, The Times Book of Quotations remains the indispensable anthology of the wit and wisdom of all ages.

'It's better to be quotable than to be honest.' Tom Stoppard

'Some, for renown, on scraps of learning dote. And think they grow immortal as they quote.' Edward Young

'It is a good thing for an uneducated man to read books of quotations.' Winston Churchill