This short book, aimed at the general public, gives a well-written, sympathetic and reasonably-priced introduction to the main ideas of Epicureanism considered as a way of life. Because of this purpose, the volume concentrates on Epicurean ethics. It also talks a little about Epicurus’ biography and the history of Epicureanism, and it introduces enough Epicurean physics to make sense of their arguments against the fear of the gods and of death.

Most of the chapters explain central topics of Epicurean ethics. These include (i) the Epicurean classification of types of pleasures, with the result that the goal of Epicurean hedonism is attaining tranquillity; (ii) the Epicurean division of desires into natural and necessary, natural and unnecessary, and unnatural and unnecessary; (iii) the role friendship plays in attaining a happy life; (iv) how to banish the fear of gods by having a correct understanding of the working of the world; and (v) why we should not fear death, given that death is annihilation. On all these topics S. is a reliable and clear guide, and readers with no background in philosophy could pick up this book and quickly come away with an accurate understanding of the main upshot of Epicurean ethics and its roots in Epicurean physics.

The book does not engage in scholarly disputes, and the main text contains no footnotes or textual references. (The end of the book contains references for each chapter and some suggestions for further reading.) The volume is extremely short – the main text is 116 pages long, but with pages measuring only 4½ by 6 inches, and 4 pages separating each chapter, it is the equivalent of approx. 50 pages. It is not a comprehensive introduction to Epicureanism, and it is not meant to be. It largely skips Epicurean epistemology, with no mention of the Epicurean criteria of knowledge or their arguments against scepticism, and it does not discuss the random atomic ‘swerve’ that is supposed to secure our freedom of action or the Epicurean account of language, to list a few examples. Often, S. explains Epicurean positions but leaves out their arguments for them. Examples include the ‘cradle’ argument for hedonism, the Epicurean arguments for why the psyche is a bodily organ and hence mortal, and their argument that the evils in the world show that it was not made for our benefit by the gods. S. does not discuss ancient criticisms of Epicureanism, for example that it is misguided to treat virtue as valuable only for the sake of securing pleasure.

In noting these limitations, I do not mean to criticise the book, but simply to make clear what it does and what it does not do. With the recent boom in publications about Stoicism as a way of life, some members of the general public may be interested in learning about other ancient philosophers. I would recommend The Pocket Epicurean without reservation as a fast and effective introduction to what the Epicureans have to say about the good life.