Euripides Vol. V: Helen, Phoenician Women, Orestes

A review of Helen: WITH Phoenician Women AND Orestes (Loeb Classical Library) edited and translated by David Kovacs (978-0674996007), first published in the JACT Review.
This volume of the Loeb Euripides has been edited and revised by David Kovacs who is working his way through the complete plays (another volume containing Bacchae, Iphigenia at Aulis, Rhesus has just been published this month). This was my first sight of this series and I was pleasantly surprised. Loebs have always had their uses, but the translations have been uneven (some very poor) and (not unreasonably) increasingly out-of-date and awkward. I did wonder whether the series had outlived its usefulness, as there are many good translations available in modern series, and for the student of language the Aris & Phillips editions provide a substantial commentary geared towards the English translation. However I enjoyed this volume: still the same size, easy to slip into a pocket (or out of sight under a desk), but with a very readable translation which ties closely to the Greek text, some helpful notes (often relating to the more obscure points of mythology) and brief references to alternative readings. The introductions to the individual plays are short but well-focused, drawing attention to the main issues arising from the drama, and for each there is a select bibliography which points the interested student towards suitable further reading. Although the facing page translation can be seductive for the learner, used sensibly this volume can facilitate the development of reading speed; for those who fear their Greek is becoming more rusty, the modern Loeb can provide an excellent refresher. Kovacs is to be congratulated on the quality of this volume: the translation can be read for itself, yet complements the Greek text and clarifies it. The volume will find a ready home in university libraries. The introductions are accessible to school students, though the bibliographies quite properly focus on scholarly work accessible for the most part only in specialist libraries. Motivated students of language will find the presentation of the plays helpful and stimulating. Those interested in Greek drama, too, have cause to welcome this volume: the Helen has often been used to ease students into the formalities of Attic drama; The Phoenician Women and Orestes are more demanding plays. I mark this volume down as highly recommended.