This scholarly but accessible edition completes Ashley Carter's journey through Virgil's Aeneid, and it is immediately obvious to anyone reading it, that he loves Virgil's writing. The format of this edition mirrors that of Selections from Virgil's Aeneid, Books 1–6 (Bloomsbury Academic 2020), and would for me be a must-have in the book-cupboard of any school. The helpful background section on Virgil and the Aeneid can be used not only for Latin students but is a good summary for those embarking on Classical Civilisation courses who are trying to understand how poetry was regarded in the ancient world. The individual synopses of each book, at the beginning of this edition would also be of use to Classical Civilisation students; however, the real focus of this selection is Latin students and the clear explanation on metre along with a section on word order and literary devices will be of great help to students and to teachers, both experienced and less experienced. One of Carter's many strengths is his ability to understand what students (and teachers) find difficult as well as what they enjoy, so in the word order section he rearranges a three-line section of Latin into word order which is accessible to the inexperienced student and then explains why it is so in clear and accessible language. It is this explanation that is most helpful, since inter-linear numbering of word order can only take a student so far. An alphabetical list of persons and places precedes the actual Latin selections and, given the list of Turnus' allies in Book 7, this is a life-saver! Once you reach the Latin selections themselves you will find them clearly set out in manageable chunks with clear and practical notes on the facing page along with suggested questions to aid literary, and wider, understanding. For students who have not encountered Virgil before, the passages are well chosen to showcase the story and Virgil's skill with words and introduce the student to epic poetry in an engaging way – omens and portents, Allecto, the shield of Aeneas, moments of pure emotion such as Euryalus asking Ascanius to take care of his mother if he dies, similes such as that of the poppy when Euryalus does die, the death of Camilla, the pursuit of Turnus by Aeneas and the revenge taken for Pallas' death. Many of these are the well-known passages of the Aeneid but the helpful commentary really assists in bringing out underlying meaning and showing how the narrative of this epic tale rises and falls. There is something here for all tastes and a good overview of the story along with plenty of examples of Virgilian narrative and characterisation. I would most certainly recommend this for any student, or teacher, who is teaching Virgil either to GCSE or A Level.
Open access
