Reading Copy Book Blog

Everyone quotes Shakespeare and most of the time they don’t know they are doing it. Everyday language is littered with phrases popularized by the Bard in his writing.

French presidential candidate François Hollande made a key speech on Sunday and, indeed, quoted Shakespeare, reports the Daily Telegraph.

The “universal message” he wished to convey, Mr Hollande told the crowd, was best summed up by Shakespeare’s great words: “They failed because they did not start with a dream.”

Sadly, he quoted the wrong Shakespeare. Hollande quoted Nicholas Shakespeare, the Daily Telegraph’s chief book reviewer. Nicholas Shakespeare is apparently a descendant of William’s grandfather, so he was close.

The quote comes from Nicholas Shakespeare’s 1989 novel, The Vision of Elena Silves. It’s a story of a Maoist revolutionary who becomes a terrorist for Peru’s Marxist guerrilla band, Shining Path.

Probably not the connection that Hollande was hoping to make!

This sort of thing is easily done. Karl Marx/Groucho Marx would be a mix-up with fascinating results.

John F Kennedy had Profiles in Courage, Barack Obama had Dreams From my Father and then The Audacity of Hope.

Newt Gingrich has written, or co-written, …well….a small library of books, including six novels and at least 15 non-fiction books. The former Speaker of the House of Representatives and Republican frontrunner for the 2012 presidential campaign is a heavy reader and a huge fan of military history.

He’s written about America’s three big Gs – government, god and gas – but it’s interesting to note that he’s also co-authored a civil war series that are alternative histories. The series features Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War, Grant Comes East and Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant The Final Victory. William R. Forstchen was his writing partner on these books.

In Gettysburg, he reimagines America’s most famous battle with Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia winning. The second novel follows up as the conflict develops around Washington DC and Baltimore. The third book describes a rather different climax to the war.

Gingrich clearly developed a taste for alternate history because he followed up the civil war series with two novels about America’s Pacific campaign in World War II – Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th and Days of Infamy. Again, he collaborated with Forstchen (and to think people say Gingrich is tough to work with).

A prolific reader, you will find Gingrich’s reviews on Amazon but he apparently only reviews books he likes.

You may remember how prices for books signed by Barack Obama went through the roof at the end of his presidential campaign. If Gingrich goes all the way to the White House, then I can safely say that won’t happen with his signed books which are plentiful and cheap as chips.