Books: Famous First & Last Words

QUOTEMANSHIP: THE USE AND ABUSE OF QUOTATIONS FOR POLEMICAL AND OTHER PURPOSES by Paul F. Boller Jr. 454 pages. Southern Methodist University Press. $7.95.

Everyone is familiar with the way the evil practice called "quoting out of context" works. For example, a routine advertisement citing a review of this work might run thus: "WELL-WRITTEN . . . YOU'LL ENJOY . . . EVERY PAGE OF THIS BOOK . . . PUBLISHED WITH A GRANT FROM THE FORD FOUNDATION."

The actual review ought to go like this: "If you're looking for a well-written book about quotations, this isn't it. However, it does bring to...

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