The Penguin Book of Twentieth-Century Speeches

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.

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.

The book was chronological which helped its readability. I really liked how it included speeches from around the world, not just those generic ones of America and the typical speeches with which we are all familiar. I've searched for a more thorough book, but this book includes the major speeches of the 20th century.

This book is a wonderful opportunity to go beyond the soundbites of famous quotes. "Ask not what your country can do for you," ask what else Kennedy said that day. This collection of speeches provides context to many of the most famous lines of the last century -- such as Churchill's Iron Curtain speech, King's I have a dream speech, and FDR's The only thing we have to fear speech. there are also lesser known speeches from the likes of Ghandi,Lloyd George and Henry Cabot Lodge. Pick this book up and add it to your collection.

We all have learned or heard phrases from many of the speeches contained in this book. It was a pleasure to read them in their entirety and find that the emotion of the time came through - even in print - even after decades had passed. They certainly offer a more interesting, inspirational view of history than a dry academic text. The only downside - my English husband was disappointed that one of Churchill's best, "We will fight them on the beaches", was not included.