The Classical Review publishes informative reviews from leading scholars on new work covering the literatures and civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome, and has done so since 1887. We ask outgoing Reviews Editor Dr Neil Hopkinson, Director of Studies and Lecturer in Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge, for his thoughts on The Classical Review. Importantly, what makes an ideal Reviews Editor? And do review journals still hold importance in the internet age? Read Dr Hopkinson’s thoughts below:

“The Classical Review appraises more than 250 books each year. One of its Editors commissions reviews and the other copy-edits them for publication. No doubt the ideal copy-editor is an obsessively pedantic enthusiast for the minutiae of hyphenation, capitalisation, font size, and so on. There are some advantages, however, in a professional Classicist such as myself doing the job as an amateur: when a contributor’s English was obscure I was often able to divine the meaning and produce a more lucid version. On the other hand, there was always the danger that too much interest in the subject-matter would distract me from my proper task. I hope that I didn’t let too many misprints through; but I have to confess that the editing was made bearable chiefly by my constantly learning new facts about the ancient world, its language and literature, its history, philosophy, archaeology and reception.

Although it is now possible for every reader to post an opinion online, there is still a place for academic journals which publish detailed and judicious evaluations by scholars of research by their peers. As more and more Classical books pour from the presses, review journals can present a synoptic view of current research and direct scholars towards what is likely to be worth reading. My seven-year stint as Editor is over, and when I open the next volume of CR pleasure will not be mingled with apprehension.”

The Classical Review would like to take this opportunity to thank Dr Hopkinson for his hard work and dedication over the past seven years and to wish him luck for the future.

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