Thank you for your interest in my book,
Your Daily Shakespeare – an arsenal of verbal weapons to drive your
friends into action and your enemies into despair.
I will briefly describe the book and
how you may find Your Daily Shakespeare useful in your
profession, in your study and in your life in general.
I will omit to state the obvious –
that is that being able to use the right quotation at the right time and
in the right context adds sparkle to your spoken and written messages.
Or if you prefer the current lingo, a good, clear and elegant punch line
lends power to your communications.
You also may agree that to convey your
opinion and persuade people to accept it – all other things being
equal - your message must have clarity, concision and punch.
Your Daily Shakespeare
gives you the means to quickly find and deliver the verbal, quick,
concise and elegant punch.
What is different in Your Daily
Shakespeare from any other book of Shakespearean quotations? Very
simple. Most dictionaries of quotations, including Shakespeare’s, list
the quotes play by play. Interesting of course but not very practical
and useful to you if you are looking for the right quote. Why? Because
you have to know already that the quotation exists before you can find
it. And if you do not already know the quote you certainly cannot scan
the whole book hoping to find it every time when you are looking for
some befitting line.
Another limitation of standard books of
quotations is that the lines are extracted from each play and so to
speak are left hanging in thin air. You do not know who said the lines
nor the context of the quote. In Your Daily Shakespeare each
entry lists a situation or situations where to apply the quote as well
as a brief description of the context in which the original lines appear
in the play (or sonnet or poem).
You will find this very helpful when
you put Your Daily Shakespeare to your good use. Helpful for two
reasons. One, you do not have to pull out the complete massive works of
Shakespeare to locate the quote to find who said what to whom and why.
And two, knowing the context helps you in two additional ways. When
using the lines you can further add a touch of class by telling
something more about the quote. But also, (and you will experience this
as you begin using the book in earnest), knowing the context helps with
memorization. And for very many quotes there are tips on how, where and
when to use them.
Your Daily Shakespeare lists and
describes over 10,000 situations or circumstances you may encounter in
your profession, your education, and in your life in general including,
yes, your love life.
There are quotes to start a
presentation, to end a presentation, quotes to attack or embarrass your
political opponent, quotes to motivate, and hundreds of quotations
dealing with love and relationships plus myriad of answers to persistent
questions such as "Do you love me?", "Do you like
me?" "How much do you love me?" and so on. You could say
that Your Daily Shakespeare is your short-cut to romanticism or
your guide to becoming a romantic in a few easy steps.
You will find more, much more in Your
Daily Shakespeare than I can describe in a few minutes. I am
confident and I hope you will find it one of the most useful reference
books you will ever consult.
Thank you and (quoting one of the many
salutations and wishes you will find in the book) may all the number of
the stars give light to thy fair way.
