Editorial

EDITORIAL Our review programme continues to prosper reasonably well. Although we appear to have lost one major supporting pubhsher for reasons which I have not been able to ascertain, it has been replaced satisfactorily by a variety of new publishers w h o have responded to m y requests. W e have a fairly full slate of reviews for this issue: twenty-three reviews and six short notices. I am also either holding or have sent out for review another seventy books, more than enough for the next two issues. Members will note the inclusion in this issue for the first time of a 'Books Received' section. I hope that it wdl prove useful. I am still soliciting new publishers to join us but we have not yet reached the point where w e will have to become selective and merely note the receipt of some books. I will not consider the decision to commence a review programme to have been a success until w e reach that point. Some members have written with suggestions of new publishers to approach. I have found, however, that approaches to publishers work best when one can mention specifictides.Publishers will respond to that better than to an open letter. If one then keeps faith with them, one can frequendy 'sign them up' on a permanent basis. I urge members, therefore, to send m e detads of any new books that they would like to review, especiahy those pubUshed by publishers who are not yet part of our list. Major Continental publishers should particularly be borne in mind here. I still have difficulty in finding reviewers for some categories of books. I am trying as best I can to send books outside Sydney but I still have only about thirty members outside Sydney who have actually written to m e indicating that they want to do reviews. I urge any members who have not done so to write, sending m e theirfieldsof expertise. W e particularly need reviewers in the following fields: History (especially English history and all parts of the Mediterranean world), Shakespeare, Chaucer, Middle EngUsh reUgious Uterature, Art History. Finally, I urge members to take advantage of our Reviews section and of the Books Received Uststoorder for their Ubraries as many of the books in question as they can justify. W e 'sell' the value of our Review Programme to publishers by holding out the prospect of increased sales in the southern hemisphere. But they are not fools. If no benefits flow from their support for our Review Programme, publishers will not continue to support us. John Pryor ...