Editor's Note

As Reviews Editor I would like to thank my predecessors, Clorinda Donato and Carl Fisher, for their helpful advice as I have faced the unforeseen challenges of starting up a new operation. I hope to build on the strengths of "their" Book Review and, at the same time, to introduce innovations.

Since the new theme of the journal, edited now by Julia Simon and Timothy Morton, is "The Global Eighteenth Century," I hope to expand review coverage by including other media and topics. First, then, the "Book Reviews" will now be renamed the "Reviews" section. I will continue the exploration of visual culture introduced by Bernadette Fort through the coverage of exhibitions; the first of these articles, by Michael Yonan, is found in this issue in a new position, not as a separate category, but directly among the reviews. I also plan to expand into musical culture and other media. To that end I will commission reviews of significant musical recordings and films, and I would encourage you to contact me if there are striking items you or someone else might be interested in reviewing.

Also in keeping with the global theme, I hope to review the state of eighteenth-century studies around the world. While the articles section of the journal will treat global interactions of the eighteenth century itself, I intend for the reviews section to complement that focus by exploring "the global eighteenth century" today. What are the main topics of concern for scholars of eighteenth-century studies beyond North American and European academies? How can the American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies learn from and contribute to eighteenth-century studies in China, India, Brazil, or South Africa?

While I plan to expand the Reviews Section in these ways, the main focus will remain books. Despite the rapid changes in technologies, printed books continue to be our central, most effective means of scholarly exchange. I believe it is my job to promote the work of scholars and presses who offer significant publications and to encourage debate that will further our knowledge of the eighteenth century.