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Author : Steven M Sheeley
Number of Pages : 120
Publisher : Abingdon Press
List Price : $15.00
Amazon Price : $8.71
Used Price : $9.24 |
Customer reviews The Bible in English Translation in Paperback  by .. H. G. Sharp (Southeast MO USA)
This book was required for a course. I would not personally purchase it otherwise. The content was OK, but not an exciting read.
One of the best on the Subject  by .. W. Clay Knick (Winchester, VA United States)
This book is one of the best books on the subject
of English Bible versions. It is concise, well-written,
and pleasant to read. One gets the impression that
the authors are in love with the subject matter.
Their enthusiasm for the Bible in English is
contagious. There are many books on the English
Bible, there are none better than this one. It works
well as an introduction to various translations
and I could see this book being used along with
Comfort's, _Essential Guide to Bible Versions_ in
a classroom setting in the church or a school. Again, this is an excellent book and I highly
recommend it to all who are interested in the
study of the English Bible.
This book is a must for anyone interested in the Bible by .. Timothy B. Dempsey (Raleigh, NC USA)
This book is incredibly user-friendly and provides a valuable look at the history, making, and various translations of the Bible. As a seminary student, I can assure you that this book is very helpful in explaining the pros and cons of each translation of the Bible. I constantly refer to this work for a quick reference guide to translations. Biblical student or not, everyone should check this book out. I also recommend Sheeley and Nash's "Choosing A Bible: A Guide to Modern English Translations and Editions", which is also an excellent resource.
A must by .. ()
I found that this book is a must for the person looking for the perfect bible. Sheeley/Nash's book provided a simple, yet thorough, explanations of an exhausted list of bibles. This book answers many questions including: what bible is best for my personal study, which translation is better for my church, why are there different translation anyways? Before beginning a personal or corprate study of the bible this book is well worth the short time it takes to read.
An excellent summary of Bible translations.  by .. ()
This book provides invaluable guidance for a person interested in buying a Bible. The book provides succinct summaries of nearly all of the English Bible translations on the market today. Many of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the translations are provided by the authors. However, I came across an error in the book. On page 85, the authors criticize the Good News Bible (GNB) for its lack of gender inclusive language. The authors made specific reference to four Bible passages to highlight their point. However, in 1992, a 2nd edition of the GNB was issued. One of the specified purposes of the 2nd edition was to revise passages which were not gender inclusive. Every one of the passages cited by the authors were changed in the 2nd edition to make them gender inclusive. Therefore, this criticism of the GNB is not valid. My only other suggestion is that the authors should have indicated what translations include the books of the Apocrypha or the Deuterocanonical books, since those books are used in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Episcopalian churches. This information was only provided for some of the translations. Nonetheless, a person would benefit by reviewing this book before purchasing a Bible for individual use or for their church.
Related Search : bible english , press , translation essential  |
Author : A. Yusuf Ali
Edition : Bilingual
Number of Pages : 1038
Publisher : Lushena Books
List Price : $23.95
Amazon Price : $16.76
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Product Description It is the duty of every Muslim, man, woman, or child to read the Qur an and understand it according to his own capacity. If any one of us attains to some knowledge of understanding of it by study, contemplation, and the test of life, both outward and inward, it is his duty, according to his capacity, to instruct others, and share with them the joy and peace which result from contact with the spiritual world. The Qur an indeed every religious book has to be read, not only with the tongue and voice and eyes, but with the best light that our intellect can supply, and even more, with the truest and purest light which our heart and conscience can give us. It is in this spirit that I would have my reads approach the Qur an. -From the introduction Related Search : translation , holy quran , english interpretation  |
Author : Michele H. Jones
Number of Pages : 296
Publisher : University Press of America
List Price : $54.00
Amazon Price : $47.33
Used Price : $38.36 |
Product Description This workbook combines methodology and practice for use in a course for beginning translators with a proficiency in French ranging from intermediate to advanced level. It takes a linguistic approach to the problems of translation in addressing common and major pitfalls: delineation of "translation units" or what constitutes a concept beyond mere words, word polysemy, false cognates, structural and cultural obstacles to literal translation. It offers chapter by chapter explanations of the various strategies used by professional translators to counter these problems: the translation devices known as transposition, modulation, equivalence, and adaptation. Each chapter concludes with a variety of practice exercises focusing on one specific problem. The second part of the book is a global application of all the principles taught in the first part and guides the student step by step through the actual translation of a choice of literary (prose, poetry, and plays) and non-literary excerpts. Customer reviews A useful book by .. amina (Chula Vista, California United States)
This book may be useful for those who intend to be translators, I can't speak to that. For me, it has been useful by offering short passages out of several centuries of French literature (and some contemporary non-literary passages) with proposed translations, the text having explained some of the thoughts behind the translations suggested. Thus it has helped me to understand when reading various styles, with their idioms and wordings.
As another reviewer pointed out, it does not seem that this book would be that useful to someone who does not read French (and of course, English).
A Workbook With No Answer Key ?  by .. aglia (Richmond, VA)
I purchased this book in order to do a self-study of french to english translation. Though the book seems to have many good exercises, there is no answer key to the exercises in the book. I don't know how one is supposed to utilize the exercises if no answers are given. I emailed the publisher (The University Press in Lanham, MD) several times before they responded that they do not have an answer key on file. Thus I feel like the book was a real waste of money. Also, I read in another review that this book would be good for a translator of any language. I disagree, the focus of the book is french, and I think a non-french speaker will not find it very useful.
Great for any language by .. Jed Buckner (Haiku, HI United States)
This book is helpful for anyone interested in language translation. It is specifically for French<>English, but the concepts presented are valid for any language pair. I found it interesting to read and comprehensive.
Comprehensive guide to translating French to English by .. ()
This is the only book of which I am aware that provides comprehensive and specific advice concerning the difficult assignment of translating French to English. It not only offers principles and precepts but it also offers outstanding examples of possible translations. The focus is not on literal translation but rather focues on the process of making the translation into English that mirrors the author's original design. The recently issued softcover edition makes this a must buy for any advanced student of french.
Related Search : french english , s workbook , translation  |
Author : Jason David BeDuhn
Number of Pages : 220
Publisher : University Press of America
List Price : $75.50
Amazon Price : $60.40
Used Price : $78.49 |
Product Description Truth in Translation is a critical study of Biblical translation, assessing the accuracy of nine English versions of the New Testament in wide use today. By looking at passages where theological investment is at a premium, the author demonstrates that man Customer reviews Read this book! by .. N. Dietrich ()
This book was an extremely informative read. The objective style of the author is refreshing, it is easy to follow and his conclusions are sharp and logical. This was the real deal - no stupid sales pitch for some new bible at the end... Though many would be suprised by the pick for best translation of scriptures compared (New World Translation/Jehovah's Witnesses) - the facts are what they are. The author puposefully chooses hotly debated scriptures, which increased my respect for the book. I think the take away is great - do you really want read an accurate bible text and make sure your beliefs are based on what was actually written - can you handle it? If so, do yourself a favor - read this book, then read the New World Translation.
A scholarly but accessible fascinating read. by .. L. Winandy ()
I was so enthralled, I read the book in one day. BeDuhn delivers an easy to digest scholarly work that is unbiased in its own right. His critical approach seems scientific and trustworthy, and his conclusions well-proven. It helps eliminate confusion about the reliability of Bible translations. He also unexpectedly unravels the translation process. He weaves in enough of hermeneutics that one is able to learn that translation is not an exact science, but a necessarily subjective one in many ways. Although it only considers 9 translations, readers are left with a sort of mental template by which to critique any translation. This is a must read for Bible readers.
TRUTH IN TRANSLATION ? Not really! by .. Kenney C. Sinnema (Arlington, WA USA)
For the complete history of translations read 'DID THE CATHOLIC CHURCH GIVE US THE BIBLE' By David W. Daniels.
An eye opener by .. Ryck (NYC NY USA)
I didn't give it more stars as I haven't finished reading the book. But what I've read so far has been very interesting and educational. The author has put together quite a compelling and well-written work.
truth in translation by .. K. Fukumoto ()
this is very informative! to see how tranlasion should be. I could compare one translation with others without bias...
you will enjoy it, too.
Related Search : truth translation , accuracy bias , new testament  |
Author : Basil Hatim
Number of Pages : 235
Publisher : Saqi Books
List Price : $26.95
Amazon Price : $16.51
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Product Description This translation guide is based on sound theoretical and pedagogical principles. Unlike other translation manuals available, it transcends crude dichotomies of "literal" vs. "free" translation, "specialized" vs. "general," "communicative" vs. "semantic," etc. and concentrates instead on developing in the student a sensitivity to text-types and a deeper understanding of the demand. which a given text-type makes on the translator. In addition, the student who closely follows this Guide will acquire the analytical tools necessary to make meaningful comments about translation and translations. A glossary of text-linguistic and translation terms Is provided together with a select bibliography. Related Search : arabic english , translation practical , english arabic  |
Author : Majid Fakhry
Edition : Bilingual
Number of Pages : 656
Release Date : 2004-03-01
Publisher : NYU Press
List Price : $25.00
Amazon Price : $22.50
Used Price : $32.33 |
Product Description "[This translation] succeeds in expressing the meaning of the original Arabic in simple, readable English."
—Publishers Weekly To followers of Islam, the Qur'an is the literal word of God, revealed through Muhammad, the last of the line of prophets, containing all that is necessary to lead a life of righteousness. This new bilingual edition, approved by Al-Azhar University, the chief center of Islamic and Arabic learning in the world, offers a comprehensive and accurate rendering of the Qur'an into modern English. The clear, rigorous translation, one of the only English translations available by a native Arabic speaker, is laid out here in dual column format directly opposing the Arabic text to allow the reader to make careful verse by verse comparisons. • approved by Al-Azhar University, Cairo • easy-to-read translation into modern English • index of surahs (chapters) • English and Arabic headers • verse numbers within text in English and Arabic • explanatory footnotes in English Customer reviews Presenting the Qur'an in "plain terms" English by .. Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA)
Approved by the Al-Azhar University, An Interpretation Of The Qur'an is a bilingual English and Arabic version of the Islamic holy text, the Qur'an. This translation, compiled by university professor Majid Fakhry and assisted by the late Mahmud Zayid, focuses upon presenting the Qur'an in "plain terms" English, as closely accurate to the original meaning as possible, while correcting some misconceptions from previous English translations and offering brief explanatory notes considering controversial or confusion portions. A handy index allows for quick lookup of assorted topics; however, An Interpretation Of The Qur'an focuses primarily upon the holy text itself, with very little extraneous material aside from an introduction that very briefly surveys the history of the Qur'an.
Related Search : interpretation qur , meanings , english translation  |
Author : Zinan Ye
Edition : Bilingual
Number of Pages : 220
Publisher : Hippocrene Books
List Price : $19.95
Amazon Price : $15.34
Used Price : $28.82 |
Product Description This is the first book published in the US that addresses how to translate from Chinese into English. "Introduction to Chinese-English Translation" is a hands-on guide that will be useful for both the student and the professional translator. Related Search : introduction chinese , english translation  |
Number of Pages : 488
Publisher : Peter Owen Ltd
List Price : $47.95
Amazon Price : $29.03
Used Price : $24.72 |
Product Description The best of Greek prose and verse from 1821 to the present. This unique anthology aims to prove that there is much more to Greek literature than Zorba. It provides a representative selection of the best Greek prose and verse from Greece's independence in 1821. Introductory notes by the editor on each writer introduce the reader to a distinctive body of work, much of which has never before appeared in book form. Customer reviews The only thing like it by .. Owen Cramer (Colorado Springs, Colorado United States)
Trying to get a feel for Greek writing since the 1821 period, in English, puts one to some inconvenience: we hear that Makriyannis is the most important prose writer, but Lidderdale's translation is out of print. We know that Cavafy is very important and that Seferis and Elytis won the Nobel--but where, poetically, did they come from? Ricks's anthology goes a long way toward solving problems like that. A whole chapter (chapter 9 of book 1) of Makriyannis--my choice would have included something of his upbringing, including the famous dialogue with St. John after his shaming over the exploded doufeki; generous selections from Solomos and Palamas and Kalvos. Curiosities like a chapter from "Pope Joan" and one from "Loukis Laras". The translations are generally by good and established writers (Kipling's WWI-era version of Solomos's words for what became the National Anthem). Introductory matter is far better than the nothing you get in "A Century of Greek Poetry", though not sufficient to allow informed reading throughout. The $41.95 list price is high, but the book is valuable.
Related Search : writing anthology , modern greek , english translation  |
Edition : 3Rev Ed
Number of Pages : 832
Publisher : Baker Academic
List Price : $42.99
Amazon Price : $23.34
Used Price : $28.89 |
Product Description Following last year's publication of his thoroughly revised translations in The Apostolic Fathers in English, 3rd ed., a leading expert on these texts offers a thoroughly revised and redesigned bilingual edition, featuring Greek (or Latin) and English on facing pages. Introductions and bibliographies are generous and up to date. In the textual apparatus, existing notes have been revised and expanded, and well over 200 new notes have been added. This handsome and handy one-volume, thin-paper edition, with ribbon marker, will be an essential resource for students and scholars and a joy to book lovers. Customer reviews A good translation of the Apostolic Fathers. by .. Matthew C. Gladd (USA)
Michael Holmes has made available a very clean and lucid translation of the Apostolic Fathers. I am thankful for his contribution to patristic reading. The textual apparatus is particularly useful. The typical Greek on one page and English on the other is a basic feature, but an important one nonetheless. A group of graduate students and I regularly get together to do Greek readings with the Apostolic Fathers and we have found Holmes book to be of great benefit for this process. We also use the Loeb Classical Library edition once translated by Lightfoot, but revised by Ehrman. The translation that Holmes has is a good one, however, there are some instances where it would "make sense" to go with the reckoning that Ehrman has taken with the text. It should be known that I am a Biblical scholar and not strictly a patristic scholar. Holmes edition has a beautiful cover and the organization is very clear with distinct headings and spacing. I do recommend that anyone who is serious about reading Greek patristics use Ehrman along with Holmes to compare the translations. Any serious student of the Greek might see the translation as a bit of a hindrance in that they would be attempting to produce their own translation when it is provided. Regardless, it is a pleasant addition to my library and I highly recommend it to others' libraries as well.
Very Nice by .. J. F Foster ()
As others have mentioned, this latest print of the Apostolic Fathers is accessible, readable, and great as a tool for keeping up your koine. All of the standard works are included (1&2 Clement, the Shepherd, Barnabas, Martyrdom of Polycarp, the Didache, etc).
Reading the Fathers in the koine offers the reader extraordinary opportunities not only to gain an appreciation of the language, but also of the literary and vocabulary diversity of the various authors. The Greek print in this book is very clear and easy to follow. It's an outstanding reference work for patristic research, and is an affordable starting point in building a quality patristics library.
Holmes does a good job of addressing current patristic scholarship, though one wishes his engagement with it was more substantive than alternating between 'intriguing' and dismissively 'speculative'. In particular, Hill's recent work on Polycarp is commendably referred to by Holmes, but not as substantively as one might have hoped.
However, such wishes do not really detract from what this book gives us. This book keeps the focus on the actual patristic writings, rather than getting into the kind of scholarly back and forth that can take the focus off the writings themselves. The corpus given to us here is great stuff, and waters the mouth of the reader to delve further into the patristic history and engage the kind of scholarly works that Holmes cites. Highly recommended.
third edition gets it (almost) right! by .. Markos (Oklahoma)
Kudos to Holmes and Baker House for giving us a hard cover of texts New Testament Greek learners need! Nothing else in koine Greek, besides maybe the LXX, is as helpful to NT Greek students because the vocabulary and the syntax of most the Apostolic Fathers is extremely similar to the NT. This means if you know the NT vocab, you can read large blocks of this text without having to look up words. Of course, having the English on facing sides is essential since we want to be able to check our translation and not have to refer to other books. Hermes and Didache in this book are probably EASIER than say the Gospel of John, so this book is helpful even to beginners, while other texts like Ignatius and 2 Clement provide some challenges for advanced students.
And the format of this book is near perfect. I panned the second edition simply because my paperback fell apart and was hard to hold open. This edition lays flat and feels great in your hand. It uses thin paper so the book is small and portable and yet the font size is still fairly large. The only thing I don't like about the third edition is that the font is a little smaller than the second edition, whose font was perfect, and this font is a little different, not quite as pleasing on the eye Also, the second edition had pure white paper whereas this edition is somewhat yellow. Still, you can't have everything. The font on this text is probably bigger and nice than say the Loeb Classical Library, and here you get all the texts in one volume which is only a little bit bigger than Loeb. This is a must have for NT Greekers!
Perfect by .. Irenaeus (Massachusetts, USA)
WARNING: Amazon has inexplicably conflated together reviews from several editions of this work. Be sure when comparing and contrasting you note carefully which edition is under review. Mine below is the latest green hardcover with gilt lettering pictured in the product description.
This handsomely-bound hardback edition truly has everything you could desire. Despite it's light weight and manageable size (5.25 x 7.5"), it is eminently readable, due to the clear Greek and English font and thin but high-quality opaque paper. This newest edition includes all the writings of the earlier Lightfoot edition: 1 & 2 Clement, Ignatius (7 letters), Polycarp (to the Philippians & Martyrdom), the Didache, Epistle of Barnabas, Sherpherd of Hermas, Epistle to Diognetus, and fragments of Quadratus & Papias, as well as updates to notes and translation. Great for those interested in early church history, quotations of canonical New Testament literature, or a chance to practice reading Koine Greek outside the N.T.
Excellent Resource by .. Philonous (Berkeley, CA)
I have only used small sections of this book so far but it is a fantastic resource. It contains up-to-date critical information about the texts themselves and any historical information about authorship, dating, etc. I did notice that the translator tends to make things gender inclusive that are definitely not so. I am generally in favor of this as many Greek words use masculine nouns to refer to a mixed gender grouping, but this translator translated gender specific words (such as aner)to include everyone. That makes the translations a little less useful for academic work. Nevertheless, it is an excellent resource for anyone with a working knowledge of Koine Greek and an interest in 1st and 2nd century Christianity.
Related Search : apostolic fathers , english translations , greek texts  |
Author : Albert Pietersma
Number of Pages : 1027
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
List Price : $30.00
Amazon Price : $23.85
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Customer reviews Excellent LXX by .. Canicus (TX)
The NETS is the single best translation of the Septuagint on the market (at least at the moment). The translation follows an ultra-literal method of translation they call "interlinear". The reason for this is that the LXX follows the same pattern and is very jarring. So, where the Hebrew and LXX agree, they translate the Hebrew text and translate it as literally as possible following the LXX at the same time. Where it disagrees, they follow the LXX.
It has as a "boiler-plate" the NRSV, but it eschews many NRSV translation principles like gender-inclusive language. All gender-inclusive language except when the LXX's language is itself gender-inclusive (and this happens). The method of translation further removes it from its English parent. In the end, the only way you can know that it started as an NRSV would be to read the introduction.
It really only has a few drawbacks. First, because the Bible is written for scholarly study, it is not useful for liturgical use or for private devotional use. Its language would also be too hard for the average reader because of its audience. This, however, is its stated goal. It may be a draw-back, but that's a side-effect of what it set out to do.
I do not like the way they translated "pnevma theou" as "divine wind" in Genesis. It's justifiable to a point (it means "breath" and "wind" as much as it does "spirit), but everywhere else I checked they translated translated "pnevma" as "spirit". It should be consistent. The reason for this is plainly obvious: it was produced by an inter-religious committee of Christians and Jews. Since Jews are not Trinitarians, and that would be a valid understanding of the Hebrew and to a degree of the Greek, they would naturally not want anything like this. Christians, almost from the beginning, have made the connection between "Spirit of God" in Genesis and "Holy Spirit". The connection is further exasperated in English, because "spirit" for us does not have the same range of meaning as it does in Greek or Hebrew. So, the only fault I can give them is that it is an inconsistent translation, not that it's an invalid one.
The prefaces also almost invariably favor the theory that the LXX is a translation with liberties over that it has a different parent text. Both are truly present, but we generally cannot tell when the LXX reading cannot be derived from repointing or re-dividing the Hebrew words (at that time, they had not yet pointed the text or put spaces in it, and so there were more ways to interpret the consonants than in its current form). Again, however, they do not say anything that is invalid regarding the relation of the LXX and its parent text. I simply divide the text differently than they do and so do not always like the introductions' emphasis.
Going back to its strengths, its production standards were exceptional. The binding is excellent, the font is excellent, and it has generous margins. It even does this by being as cheap as the "cheap" Bibles. Short of going back to rag paper, this is about as good as I would normally expect.
Overall, if you have good reading skills, I would reccomend this translation hands-down over any other English translation.
The NETS - first impressions by .. James Petzold (UK)
I was looking forward to this translation after reading Brenton's excellent version.
Plusses so far:
Format - excellent. Value for money, couldn't be better. Notes and explanations, generous and very useful. The one book I have read in its entirety so far is Esther - excellent, handles the lengthy parentheses very well, couldn't put it down. I have only dipped into some of the others.
Disappointments:
Genesis: "divine wind" instead of "Spirit of God" - somewhat puzzling, bearing in mind the context (I speak as a professional translator). (Some of the English in the NETS needs tidying up - with footnotes if there is a problem.)
Psalms: From the preface "To the reader of Psalms": "At not a few places, Ralfs enclosed within square brackets items of text, which, although they could not in his judgement justifiably be regarded as original nevertheless have widespread support in the textual traditions. Since in all these cases I agree with Ralfs' conclusion, I have excluded these items from NETS without comment." - OUCH! Example: Psalm 39(40) Verse 7(6) "Sacrifice and offering you did not want, but a body you have prepared for me" has been replaced by "Sacrifice and offering you did not want, but ears you have fashioned for me" from the MT I guess but without comment. So, the translator is inferring that the writer of Hebrews in the NT who quotes this verse from the LXX (as most other NT writers quote from the LXX) is also wrong? I would expect an accademic version to contain the omitted text to enable the reader to judge for himself - as Ralfs did for the Greek text.
Worth getting? certainly, but IMHO it could be improved with some revision.
A New English Translation of the Septuagint by .. Bob O. Britton AOJN (La Grange, IL USA)
Few of us are really competent in foreign languages. Therefore I believe that comparisons of translations of the Bible are essential for more accurate study of scripture. This is quite good. Our class group (which has
been meeting for over five years)found it beneficial in clarifying passages.
A great introduction to the LXX by .. Joel L. Watts (Charleston, WV)
Contrary to what a reviewer said, this is not a warmed-over NRSV. Instead, while using the NRSV as a backdrop, the translators still free themselves in bringing forth the Greek text.
It includes the Deuterocanon, as well as the Psalms of Salomon. Each book is prefaced with a copious amount of notes and other reading material. Pleasantly enough, divergent textual traditions are included, expanding Joshua, Daniel and others.
This book is not liturgical, but it quite helpful in understanding the bible that the Apostles would have read.
An overdue translation that turns out to be a "modified NRSV" plus by .. a voice of reason (Houston, TX)
I had been eagerly awaiting my pre-ordered copy of "A New English Translation of the Septuagint" (NETS) because I knew that eminent LXX experts had been hard at work to give us a long overdue scholarly translation that would supersede the older, widely-familiar translation of Sir Lancelot C. L. Brenton. Now that I have read through parts of NETS, I have mixed reactions to it: NETS is not everything that I had hoped for, but it is nevertheless a satisfactory translation. In addition, there are brief-but-helpful introductions to each individual book of the LXX in which the history, background, Greek text used, and translation techniques/difficulties of the particular book are addressed. A bonus is that the translations of the Book of Daniel, as well as the apocryphal additions of "Susanna" and "Bel and the Dragon", contain both the Old Greek version and the later translation by Theodotion in parallel columns; other books which also have two distinctly different Greek texts, such as Judges and Esther, receive the same treatment.
Since I was under the impression that this would be a completely new translation, I was surprised to find out that the translators had used the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) as the base text for NETS. Editors Albert Pietersma and Benjamin G. Wright use a considerable percentage of their foreword to the reader to explain the rationale for this decision, and they admit that it "perhaps needs some justification." They believe that using the NRSV as a base text was "the more practical and economical" approach and assert that NETS is "not intended to be the-NRSV-once-over-lightly but rather a genuine representation of the Greek." The purpose behind this decision was so that the user of NETS "should be able to utilize it to the greatest degree achievable (within set parameters) in a comparative study of the Hebrew and Greek texts, albeit in English translation." Given that this was the goal, I can grudgingly concede the translators' use of the NRSV as a base text rather than translating without any dependence on an existing English version.
While the goal of being able to study the Hebrew and Greek texts of the O.T., "albeit in English," is a good one, I am disappointed that the translation will not be quite as useful to me in my own reading of Alfred Rahlfs' edition of the Septuagint. The reason for this is that the translators used the Goettingen Septuagint editions for those books in the LXX for which a Goettingen editon is available (they did use Rahlfs' edition for the remaining books). It is my understanding that the books of the Goettingen Septuagint are the foremost critical editions available today; however, they are not widely available (and, therefore, not likely to be affordable for the average lay reader/scholar who could track down copies of the books). I have no idea how different the Goettingen LXX editions are from Rahlfs' edition, so I suppose I'll find out as I encounter the differences in NETS. Again, I grudgingly accept this decision on the part of the editors - and I say grudgingly only because it hinders my intended use for the translation - due to their rightful desire to use the best available texts.
As far as the intended audience, the foreword states that NETS is intended for "a biblically well-educated audience" which "has a more than passing interest in traditions of biblical literature other than their own." The translation approach makes this English version of the LXX "more a translation of formal correspondence than one of dynamic equivalence"; this means that NETS is intended neither for liturgical use in churches, nor as an easily-accessible version for everyday reading.
Given the approach of `formal correspondence', a reader should expect some rather inelegant translations in portions of text. However, I got no further than Genesis 1:2 before I encountered an example of a passage that made me question certain translation choices. Robert J. V. Hiebert, the translator of Genesis, renders 1:2 thusly: "Yet the earth was invisible and unformed, and darkness was over the abyss, and a divine wind was being carried along over the water." The "divine wind" conjured up the image of Japanese kamikaze (which means `divine wind') planes diving into American battleships. However, beyond the unfortunate word association of the expression, I also don't believe that "divine wind" is the best translation for the Greek "pneuma theou" or the Hebrew "ruah elohim" (and, yes, the editors do state that one must also consider the Hebrew text that underlies the LXX when translating certain words or expressions). While both "pneuma" and "ruah" can mean `wind', `spirit', or `breath', I can't recall ever seeing "theou" or "elohim" translated as the adjective "divine" (the NRSV, the base text for NETS, translates this as "a wind from God"). In addition to the fact that I'm not certain that "divine" is a viable translation, a "divine wind...being carried" doesn't make the best sense contextually either; thus, "being carried" is probably not the best translation choice for the Greek word "epiphero". Since a wind usually `carries' rather than "being carried", I would submit either "the spirit of God was rushing upon the water" or "the breath of God was rushing upon the water".
The abovementioned items are just a few things to take into consideration if you are trying to decide whether or not to purchase this translation. All in all, while NETS is not precisely what I had been expecting, its shortcomings - which some readers might not consider to be such - are not so serious as to make it a "pestiferous" translation (see Pietersma's translation of Psalm 1:1 for another example of an inelegantly translated passage in which, this time, the word "pestiferous" is used). I look forward to the possibilty of a parallel Greek-NETS edition or, better yet, a parallel Greek-NETS-NRSV edition; either such volume would make NETS far more useful.
Addendum: One day after writing this review, I received a catalogue that contained "A Comparative Psalter" edited by John R. Kohlenberger III. It was published in 2006 and is also available here on Amazon. This Psalter contains, in parallel columns, the Hebrew Masoretic Text and the English Revised Standard Version (not sure why he went with the old RSV rather than the NRSV - copyright royalties perhaps?) on one page and the Greek Septuagint Text alongside the NETS on the facing page. It gives me hope that such a comparative volume for the entire Old Testament will be printed at some point in the not-too-distant future (the fact that the Hebrew MT would be included in such an edition is fantastic - I had thought about that when I made my suggestions at the end of my review, but then I figured it might be asking for a bit too much. I'm glad to know that's not the case).
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