April Quote of the Month: "Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing"

"Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing." 

- Oscar Wilde in The Picture of Dorian Gray


Last week, America was given an extra day to file taxes (see IRS site down for millions of people trying to file last minute), so what better time to remember the wise orders of Oscar Wilde in The Picture of Dorian Gray than with our Qoute of the Month for April?

The Picture of Dorian Gray and Other Short Stories is a compilation of short stories by Oscar Wilde, along with his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. It was originally published in 1888 under the title Stories: Oscar Wilde.

Some of the short stories within include: "The Sphinx Without a Secret," "The Model Millionaire," and stories from the previously-published collections "A House of Pomegranates" and "The Happy Prince and Other Tales." This book is sure to interest Oscar Wilde fans and fans of Victorian literature.

About the Author
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was a celebrated Irish-born playwright, short story writer, poet, and personality in Victorian London. He is best known for his involvement in the aesthetic movement and his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, as well as his many plays, such as Lady Windermere's Fan, The Importance of Being Ernest, A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, and Salomé.

Shakespeare Unauthorized at Boston Public Library

Ever wanted to find out more about the man behind the world-famous plays like The Merchant of Venice, Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest, Twelfth Night, Othello, and countless others? The Boston Public Library, through March 31, is showcasing 400 years of literary speculation, adaptations, works, celebrations, and history of William Shakespeare in an exhibit called Shakespeare Unauthorized.

Boston Public Library holds one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of Shakespeare's work, so visitors can learn more about his life, as well as his books, sonnets, and poems, all in his original language and spelling.

Before you plan your trip to Boston, pick up one of our wonderful Cosimo Classics by or about The Bard.

Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare

He is the greatest writer in the English language — perhaps in any language — and here, in one compact volume is all the verse even many of those familiar with his plays have never read. In 1593 and 1594, while English theaters were closed in response to the plague, William Shakespeare turned from drama to narrative poems, and published the dyad "Venus and Adonis" and "The Rape of Lucrece," erotic meditations on lust and sexual power. Standing powerfully in opposition to each other, they also differ wildly from Shakespeare's romantic sonnets — all 154 of them are here. 

Life In Shakespeare's England: A Book of Elizabethan Prose by J.D. Wilson

British Shakespearean scholar J.D. Wilson is best remembered for his explications of the Bard, particularly his acclaimed 1935 work What Happens in Hamlet. Here, however, he takes a rather more oblique approach to enlightening us to the world of Shakespeare, gathering together in this 1913 volume writings by contemporaries of the playwright's — some famous, some not — that illuminate the artistic society and ordinary life of Elizabethan England.

Elizabethan Drama I: The Five Foot Shelf of Classics, Vol. XLVI by Christopher Marlowe 

Originally published between 1909-1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology. Volume XLVI features four of the masterpiece tragedies by the greatest playwright in the English language — William Shakespeare's Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth, and The Tempest. Also included in this volume is Edward the Second, a 1592 drama of court intrigue, by Christopher Marlowe who greatly influenced Shakespeare's writing and who — some speculate — may actually have penned the plays credited to Shakespeare after faking his own death and taking on an assumed name.

Shakespeare Lexicon, Vol. 1 by Alexander Schmidt

Still often used today, German schoolmaster and philologist Alexander Schmidt's Shakespeare Lexicon is the source for elucidating the sometimes cryptic language of Shakespeare and tracking down quotations. Volume 1 covers A through L, from "a: the first letter of the alphabet" to "Lysimachus," a proper name. Every word from every play and poem is cataloged, referenced, and defined in this exhaustive two-volume work, the result of arduous research and stalwart dedication. Serious scholars and zealous fans will find the Lexicon the ultimate guide to reading and decoding the Bard.

Shakespeare Lexicon, Vol. 2 by Alexander Schmidt

Still often used today, German schoolmaster and philologist Alexander Schmidt's Shakespeare Lexicon is the source for elucidating the sometimes cryptic language of Shakespeare and tracking down quotations. Volume 2 covers M through Z, from "Mab: the queen of the fairies" to "Zounds: an oath contracted from God's wounds," and features numerous appendices and supplements on grammar and usage. Every word from every play and poem is cataloged, referenced, and defined in this exhaustive two-volume work, the result of arduous research and stalwart dedication. Serious scholars and zealous fans will find the Lexicon the ultimate guide to reading and decoding the Bard.

An Interpretation of Shakespeare's Sonnets

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest writer who ever lived. He has not only dominated the stage with his magnificent plays, but he has won the hearts of many with his exquisite, and clever sonnets. In fact, his sonnets are deemed so clever, that no, one clear interpretation exists for each. As a result, for centuries they have inspired classes and discussions within almost every University. They have driven scholars to dedicate their lives to understanding the works' meanings. Shakespeare's beautifully crafted language tells history, love, and love lost and has been the inspiration for many developments.

Cosimo shares with you one individual's detailed observations and interpretations of Shakespeare's sonnets, which open the mind's eye to a whole new view of the master-mind's work. Alan Tarica, although without a formal training in the Humanities, developed a keen interest in the poetic works. His interpretations, which are displayed on his website, have caught the eye's of many. If you are in need of an intellectual challenge, or are an avid reader of Shakespeare's sonnets, Alan Tarica's website is sure to interest you.

Cosimo is proud to offer Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare in paperback at leading online bookstores including Barnes & Noble and Amazon.