Sheed's 1942 translation has been published twice, both times by Hackett publishing. The first edition included only the first ten books, but the revised edition has all thirteen, with an introduction by Peter Brown (a biographer of Augustine), and expanded notes and commentary by Michael Foley, extolled as "a truly excellent reader of Augustine." This translation is highly recommended by many.
Like the first Hackett edition of the Augustine's Confessions, the second edition features F. J. Sheed's remarkable translation of this classic spiritual autobiography with an Introduction by noted historian of late antiquity Peter Brown. New to this edition are a wealth of notes on literary, philosophical, biblical, historical, and liturgical topics by Michael P. Foley, an Editor's Preface, a map, a timeline, paragraph numbers in the text, a glossary, and a thorough index. The text itself has been completely reset, with textual and explanatory notes placed at the foot of the page for easy reference.
"To my ears, Sheed’s translation is the most beautiful English translation available. The same electric current that runs through Augustine’s original can be felt in this translation, which combines a slightly elevated style (more elevated in direct prayers) combined with the immediacy and transparency of a street preacher (not that different from Augustine’s own style). The latest edition includes an introduction by Peter Brown, the best biographer of Augustine, and notes and commentary by Michael Foley, ."
—Jared Ortiz, Hope College, in Catholic World Report
"This translation is already a classic. It is the translation that has guided three generations of students and readers into a renewed appreciation of the beauty and urgency of a masterpiece of Christian autobiography. This is largely because the translator has caught not only the meaning of Augustine’s Confessions, but a large measure of its poetry. It makes the Latin sing in English as it did when it came from the pen of Augustine, some sixteen hundred years ago. Deeply rooted in the tradition of which Augustine was himself a principal founder, this translation is not only modern: it is a faithful echo, in a language that has carried throughout the ages, of its author’s original passion and disquiet."
—Peter Brown
"Saint Augustine's Latin presents notable difficulties for translators. And even good English translations have usually dated badly. Frank Sheed’s, which I read a mere fifty years ago, still shows no signs of dating. It captures Augustine’s extraordinary combination of precise statement and poetic evocation as does no other."
—Alasdair MacIntyre
"Augustine’s sublime Confessions fairly ring with the music of a baroque eloquence, lavish and stately. F. J. Sheed’s ear for that music makes this translation a memorable opportunity to hear Augustine’s voice resonating down the years."
—James O’Donnell
Did you find this review helpful?