Product Description

This book includes over 50 momentous and thought-provoking speeches from a wide range of historical eras and nations. Complete with biographies of each speaker, the history of why each speech was significant and what happened as a result, this is a fascinating history of the world told through the speeches that shaped it.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10156 in Books
• Published on: 2008-08-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

From the Publisher
Includes 80 minute audio CD

From the Inside Flap
Since the beginning of time, great leaders have used their power of oratory to win and inspire followers. Included here are the speeches of Moses, Jesus, George Washington, Queen Elizabeth I, Abraham Lincoln, Napoleon Bonaparte, Mahatma Gandhi, Clarence Darrow, Emmeline Pankhurst, Winston Churchill, Franklin D Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, George S Patton, Stalin, Martin Luther King, John F Kennedy, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, George W Bush and many others who have motivated, given hope to and sometimes terrified those who heard them.
This book contains over 50 momentous and thought-provoking speeches from a wide range of historical eras and nations, and will both inspire readers and give them a greater understanding of the events of the time.
Each speech is accompanied by a comprehensive introduction that explains its historical background, why it was significant and what happened as a result. A biography of each speechmaker explains how they came to stand at the crossroads of history.

From the Back Cover
And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. Martin Luther King.

You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word. It is victory! Victory at all costs! Victory in spite of all terrors. Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is no survivial. Winston Churchill.

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. John F Kennedy.

I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony with equal opportunities. It is an ideal what I hope to live for, and see realized. But my lord, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die. Nelson Mandela.

Customer Reviews

It doesn't do what it says on the tin!
There are some great speeches in this book, some wonderful pieces of oratory captured on the page, but i take considerable issue with the title and in some cases with the authors historical context pieces.

Prefacing a speech by Valclav Havel he mentions that "this is a little known speech"; how then did it change the world?
The author's Irish historical contextual pieces leave a lot to be desired (yes I'm Irish and yes I want a balanced view of our history, not Mr Montefiore's view). His choice of a speech by Eamonn De Valera is perplexing. It is little known within Ireland and even less known outside. A good speech and well crafted but I doubt it changed Ireland let alone the world.

Nonetheless there are speeches here that bear reading and re-reading. Martin Luther King, Hitler - to read such vitriol is essential, the Gettysburg address, Churchill's defining WW2 speeches - which are some of the few that could be said to live up to the title.

Buy it for the speeches, ignore the author's contextual introductions and let some powereful words speak for themselves, but don't expect them to change the world

A great collection os speeches accompanied by a CD of some of the speakers
I bought this book out of curiosity really. I had long wanted to read some of the most famous speeches in the world beacuse I'd heard of the key phrases like:
- Ask not what America can do for you, but what you can do for America
- I have a dream..
- While the World sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom
- Old soldiers don't die, they just fade away...
- etc

I wanted to explore what makes those speeches so pivotal and so powerful. Whilst the written words themselves are stirring enough in themselves, having some of the speeches on a CD where you can hear the oratory really made them come alive for me. It's amazing how different the styles of delivery are.

The passion, the intonation and delivery really helped me understandf why these speeches are so memorable. I think it's debatable whether these are really world-changing speeches.

Personally, I was not enamoured by the speeches by religious figures, such as Moses, Jesus, St Frances of Assisi and by Mohammed.

The remainder are a varied and ineresting collection. Most of the speeches are by world renound figures trying to do thier best fo humanity, and some by rogues. I think it's a great collection.

I find myself listening to the CD from time to time and still finding nuances in the delivery theat I'd previously missed. The two by Martin Luther King are especially outstanding. His "I have a dream" is truly stirring given the context in which it was delivered, but even more powerful is his delivery of "mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the lord".

If you're generally interested in leadership styles, curious about what makes some of the world's famous speeches stand out, I expect you will find this book and the accompanying CD very useful and interesting.

You can argue about whether the collection of speeches is truly world changing and whether the context given for each of them is useful, nevertheless, the most famous speeches are here and the CD is a brilliant add-on.

a badly received present
I bought this for a friend then felt awful when I heard that he hadn't enjoyed it. I read it myself and realise why - because it's rubbish. There are much better books than this around. don't buy it