This is a most welcome and significant volume that spans 21 years of scholarship by S., an emblematic figure in Plutarchan studies, who has devoted much of his intellectual energy to the exploration of the impact of political biographies on the Graeco-Roman elite of the first and second centuries a.d. The volume brings together 23 papers written between 1992 and 2013: nineteen of them have previously been published either in the proceedings of the conferences of the International Plutarch Society or in other edited volumes, one (Chapter 1) is a new contribution and three of them (Chapters 8, 10 and 13) are forthcoming in different publications. Hence, one of the most important merits of the volume is that it provides the reader with the unique opportunity to appreciate in a direct and comprehensive manner S.'s range of thought and the leading contribution he has made to the understanding and interpretation of Plutarch's work. In addition, it allows convenient access to some of his key publications which are difficult to find, such as his chapter in A. Pérez Jiménez & F. Titchener (edd.), Valori letterari delle opere di Plutarco: studi offerti al professore Italo Gallo dall'International Plutarch Society, Málaga / Logan: Universidad de Málaga / Utah State University 2005 (only one copy in the United Kingdom and highly inaccessible worldwide).

The book is divided into four wide-ranging sections: ‘Two Worlds – or One?’, ‘Writing for Romans’, ‘Statesmen as Models and Warnings’ and ‘Post-Classical Reception’, which by their very nature signal the astonishing thematic diversity of the papers assembled here. Two papers originally published in Italian have been translated into English (Chapter 12 and 23). A full table of contents is available on the publisher's website.

The volume is enhanced by a well-written and succinct introduction, which sets out the political, social and cultural context of Plutarch's day, sensitising us to the complexities of the Graeco-Roman world and also to Plutarch's position in the cultural movement of the Second Sophistic. Beyond simply valorising Plutarch's role as a political philosopher, S.'s brief comparison between Plutarch and Dio Chrysostom (pp. 4–5 and passim) hints at the pressing need for an all-encompassing study of what Plutarch's profile (factual, fictional or otherwise), works and mental mapping might reveal about his attitude towards sophistic trends in his time.

The first part focuses on Plutarch's contacts with the elite of Rome. In Chapter 1, S. partly reconsiders his earlier views (see Chapter 2) on this crucial issue and offers useful insights into the different ways in which certain powerful Romans could have acted both as true friends and as patrons for Plutarch using ‘their superior status and wealth to help this philosopher biographer in a reciprocal relationship’ (p. 43). Although much emphasis is given to the Roman institution of patronage and to Rome's hegemony, both symptomatic of Plutarch's age, S. is careful in setting limitations on what we can really know regarding the benefactions Plutarch enjoyed: ‘For all that Plutarch tells us, much remains obscure. Plutarch introduces us to his powerful friends. But is silent on the benefits they brought beyond the friendship itself. … The force of Plutarch's personality as it comes to us through his works argues that he held a pre-eminent position with them. But we cannot be sure’ (p. 43). Chapter 3 is highly significant in that it backs up Plutarch's engagement with Roman history and culture by delving into his other biographical project, the Lives of the Caesars, which S. dates to the reign of Vespasian, thus arguing for a much earlier chronology than has hitherto been suggested by others. The rest of the chapters in this section discuss Plutarch's role at the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi (Chapters 4 and 5) and his participation in contemporary drinking parties (Chapters 6 and 7) as two different spaces of interaction with Rome, paying special attention to Plutarch's moral outlook in such settings.

Part 2 deals with Plutarch's acquaintance with Roman history and literature, persuasively arguing that Plutarch was much more competent in reading Latin than has so far been recognised (Chapter 9). Chapter 13 is a fresh and valuable contribution on the subject of Plutarch's perception of Alexandria as a Graeco-Macedonian foundation and later on a Roman province. S.'s well-researched references to a number of recently discovered papyri fragments from Egypt attest to the popularity Plutarch enjoyed in his lifetime and the extensive circulation of his works beyond Greece and Rome.

Part 3 is exclusively concerned with the Parallel Lives. S. raises the important question of how Plutarch communicated to his Roman readers the moral implications of political leadership and political practice more generally. This leads him to comment very aptly on Plutarch's persuasion techniques and the sophisticated diversity of his rhetorical exposition. In the light of S.'s thorough investigation of the Parallel Lives, we now have more evidence as to the cohesion of the project and its unified function as a ‘combined Greco-Roman historical panorama’ (p. 16).

The final section examines two cases of the reception of the Parallel Lives: first, Joseph Addison's reworking of Plutarch's Cato the Younger (1713) and second, Alexander Hamilton's notes on Theseus–Romulus and Lycurgus–Numa (1777–8). The collection finishes with a thought-provoking discussion of how Plutarch's spirit and legacy might be relevant to us today.

In gathering together these 23 chapters, the collection provides a clear illustration of S.'s contribution to the study of Plutarch. As mentioned above, some of the texts included have undergone minor revisions or updates, and it would have been particularly helpful if indications were given to direct the reader to such changes, for example in the form of corrigenda or addenda. It would have been a boon for Plutarchists if the volume preserved the pagination of the original articles, thus minimising any possible confusion in interaction with literature that cites the originals. S.'s long career and accumulated wisdom is represented in this robust collection of essays, which deserves to be read not just by students and scholars of Plutarch but by a broader class of readers.