Guide to Greece: Southern Greece

Rating:
Summary: Ian Myles Slater on: More on the Penguin Translation
Review: I have reviewed the companion volume (Guide to Greece: Central Greece) in the Penguin Classics series, and commented there that the Peter Levi translation is not ideal. One of the problems I had in mind is that the division into two volumes, while sensible in itself, does not follow the standard order of the books, but groups them geographically. Pausanias should have done this himself, but the innovation means flipping between the volumes when looking up cross-references to originally adjacent material, and really complicates using references in other volumes. Still, this is not an insurmountable problem, and should not be an objection if (when?) this translation is returned to the Penguin list. Of course, the Penguin Classics are currently (2003) being reprinted in a larger format, and that may prove an occasion for altering the "Guide to Greece" in a new edition

Rating:
Summary: Great Footnotes!
Review: I purchased the Pausanias' Guide to Southern Greece many years ago before vacationing in the Pelopponese. Pausanias gives a very detailed account of many tourists sites. It is referred to on plaques at Greek sites in Greece. However, as important as Pausanias, is Peter Levi. His footnotes are extremely helpful in understanding the text and relating descriptions to what is on the ground today. I learned at least as much from the Peter Levi's footnotes as I did from Pausanias' text. I would not buy a different translation without his footnotes.
I give this only a 4 star rating because it may be too detailed for the casual reader.