Give me my ears back.

• Author: Mangu-Ward, Katherine
• Position: Briefly Noted - Lend Me Your Ears: Oxford Dictionary of Political Quotations - Brief article - Book review

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The cover of Lend Me Your Ears: Oxford Dictionary of Political Quotations (Oxford) features a photo of President Barack Obama, his large aural appendages silhouetted in light. Unfortunately, the visual joke is false advertising: The book largely fails to treat its subjects with the skepticism one would expect from editor Antony Jay, best known for co-writing the satiric '80s TV/shows Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister.

George Orwell, Dorothy Parker, and H.L. Mencken are all present and accounted for, but the quotes from politicians--notably the live variety--tend toward empty rhetoric. Will...