Andrew Hadfield's book is a delightful read for anyone wishing a concise but detailed discussion of Donne's life and thinking. The outline of the book is clear and purposeful, and the presentation is well supported with examples. The book seems to be working toward two distinct but compatible aims. While the author states early on that the book “is not designed to be” a biography (11), it still includes a rather comprehensive overall outline of Donne's life, with each chapter including enough background and biographical information to remind even an infrequent reader of Donne of his most essential life events. This information is based on established biographers, like Walton and Bald, without substantial challenges or new propositions, yet with the objective to be part of a “re-assessment of Donne's life” (9). Another major focus of the book is on Donne's religious development and his concern to “receive salvation” (16). This combination of biographical review and focus on the development of religious life is the main strength of the book.

In chapter 1, “The Soul and the Self,” Hadfield explores Donne's thinking through familiar passages (from “Batter my Heart” to “Death's Duell”). After a more general introduction, however, the author lingers on Donne's Biathanatos, and the emphasis on the soul turns to a focus on death. Chapter 2, “Religion,” gives a more detailed outlook on Donne's religious context in general and presents some interesting arguments related to whether Donne indeed was consistent in his views on religion throughout his life (69).

Chapter 3, “Sexuality,” opens with a warning not to read too much of Donne's own sexual experiences in his poems (83–84), and the chapter then focuses mainly on Ovid and poets contemporary to Donne (like Shakespeare and Nashe). When the discussion turns toward Donne's poems, the more obvious ones are presented (mainly “To His Mistress Going to Bed”). The arguments are not novel as such, but again, the overview of the material is certainly useful to newer readers of Donne. Chapter 4, “Marriage,” discusses John Donne and Ann, with special interest in their Pyrford years, illustrated with further marriage(-bed)-related poems (like “The Sun Rising,” “The Canonization,” and “The Flea”). In both these chapters, Hadfield repeatedly notes how the impossibility of dating Donne's love poetry also blurs the discussion of the poetry as premarital escapades versus valorizations of the married state. Hadfield seems to agree with those scholars arguing that most of Donne's love poetry would have been addressed to his wife, yet without elaborating on these biographical implications or readings at any great length. The chapter on marriage fittingly ends with Ann's death and Donne's epitaph for her.

Chapter 5, “Learning,” could perhaps have been placed earlier in the book. It sets Donne in the classic and contemporary poetic continuum, again with heavy emphasis on Ovid. The second part of the chapter focuses on Donne's theological framework. Hadfield presents interesting deliberations, leaving the reader eager for even more textual evidence from Donne's poetry.

Chapter 6, “Friendship,” introduces Donne primarily as an epistolary writer, thus presenting a specific view to his social network. The chapter closes with reflections on Donne's relationship with his female patrons, ending with the death of the Countess of Bedford in 1627. Left without a separate concluding chapter, this final discussion lends a slightly unusual tone to a Donne overview.

The “Chronology” after the final chapter is very useful and includes detailed family events, while some entries on Donne's career are somewhat sketchier. The reader may also have benefited from a traditional alphabetized bibliography rather than the surprisingly subjective “Biographical Essay” at the end of the book.

Finally, it must be added that the book is visually very pleasing. The paper of the printed book is of high quality, the typeset agreeable to the eye, and the images clear and sharp, many rendered in beautiful color. The book serves well as an illustrated overview, and it is a welcome addition to the discussion about Donne's religious thinking, especially for students and readers of Donne who want to move beyond general introductions and get to know the poet on a deeper level.