There's already been some talk about these editions on the site, but I figured it was time to round up the available information in one place. R. L. Allan's will be introducing two new ESV formats this fall, along with the latest version of the beloved Allan's Journal. I asked Nicholas Gray for the latest details, and here they are.
R. L. Allan's Personal Size Reference ES
V
Coming in September
Ever since the
Personal Size Reference ESV came out, I've wanted R. L. Allan to do their own edition ... and I haven't been alone. Judging from the e-mail that floods my inbox, many of you have wanted the same thing. Now it's happening. According to Nicholas Gray, they're being bound at this very moment: "We should see copies toward the end of September all being well."
The PSR will be available with semi-yapp, Highland goatskin covers in your choice of three colors: black, chocolate brown, and red. They'll have three big ribbons, and it sounds like they'll follow the styling cues of the latest ESV1. Price? £90. (Update: This is a Crossway-printed PSR identical in layout to the current edition, but bound by R. L. Allan. So yes, it's single column, just like the PSR I reviewed for the site.)
R. L. Allan's Journals
September/October
The newest version of the
Allan's Journal will be making its debut soon, too. Two sizes will be offered. The smaller will be bound in the same highland goatskin as the Bible covers, and will sell for
£20. I'm not sure about color availability, but I suppose it's possible we'll see black, dark brown, and red, corresponding to the PSR covers. (Update: The colors will be black, tan, and chocolate brown -- so I was close.) The larger ones will go for £25, and will be bound in black and antique brown buffalo grain goatskin. The journals are still about a month out, so I'm guessing they'll be available sometime in September or October.
R. L. Allan's Reader's Edition
November/December
In cooperation with
EvangelicalBible.com, R. L. Allan is developing a "Reader's Edition" of the ESV, a large print, double column edition. It's being printed now, and should be available by the end of November.
Royal License to Publish KJV
In addition to all this, Nicholas shared some good news:
"R L Allan have just been granted the Royal Licence under Letters Patent by Queen Elizabeth to publish the KJV in Scotland. Cambridge hold this privilege in England. Queen Victoria set this up in 1839 to protect the KJV text from bad editions, and in Scotland the Lord Advocate and the Solicitor General act on the Queen's behalf to ensure that her Bible is properly printed and published -- by us! So this royal 'imprimatur' will appear on future Allan editions of the KJV and it will start with the reprint of the Lonprimer edition towards the end of this year."
With the 400th anniversary of the KJV's first printing in 1611 less than eighteen months away, it will be interesting to see how many new editions of the Authorized Version see the light of day.
