The text of Osprey New Vanguard 225 Roman Republican Warship, is a horror show. I originally read it as a glad fan of ancient ships eager to glean anything new or different, but..
The previous 7 blogposts I have made addressed the colour plates
concocted for this book. As is the Osprey format it is these that sell
the books. The text should also be examined. The main incentive for
examining the text closely was provided by the examples of plagiarism I
found in connection with the illustrations. What is lying in the long
grass of the text ?
If one then reads the book as I would students' submissions then I am AMAZED that it came to press in its current form. That is, if it was proof-read or subject to editorial examination. I do not now believe that Osprey have a meaningful editorial staff. The author is writing in a second language and a lot can be accepted on that basis. Shakespeare he is not. However, grammar, punctutation and consistent style can all be marked down a long way.
I am in the process of making a short summary of the book's text.
If one then reads the book as I would students' submissions then I am AMAZED that it came to press in its current form. That is, if it was proof-read or subject to editorial examination. I do not now believe that Osprey have a meaningful editorial staff. The author is writing in a second language and a lot can be accepted on that basis. Shakespeare he is not. However, grammar, punctutation and consistent style can all be marked down a long way.
I am in the process of making a short summary of the book's text.
No comments:
Post a Comment