I LOVE the Oxford Annotated and use it along with the HarperCollins and New Interpreter's for my work in seminary and at church, and I have recommended the Oxford to literally hundreds of people. When I found out that a new edition had been released, I announced it in our church newsletter and I went ahead and bought 15, meaning to sell them to our members at cost or to give them as gifts. Why 1 star? It's because
1) THE PAPER ON WHICH IT IS PRINTED IS A BAD JOKE. Just like the New Interpreter's, you cannot open and close the thing without having the pages bend back upon themselves. The pages become crumpled with even the gentlest use.
2) CONTENT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU CANNOT READ THE PRINT. There are two factors at play here. The font is miniscule and the paper is virtually transparent. How they printed this in the first place is a miracle of science.
3) PEOPLE NEED THIS BIBLE IN THEIR HANDS. I gave this Bible to two separate people who had said that they wanted one. I asked them to be honest and let me know if they thought that they would have trouble reading it. Both of them handed their copies back to me saying "No, thank you." - even with the Church picking up half the cost.
Dear Whoever Makes These Decisions:
I work hard to convince people that they need to get a first-class, academic Study Bible. It is a hard sell because they are so bound to their "relevant", "real world", (Shall I go on?), quasi-scholarly, agenda-driven, anything but the NRSV, Devotional Bibles. Please believe me when I say that those of us who care about the wonderful work that you do are willing to carry around larger, heavier Bibles if what we get is stronger, more opaque paper, and larger fonts. We would be HAPPY to pay more if you would improve the printing and bind the books so that they can stand up to the years of use that the Oxford Annotated, HarperCollins and New Interpreter's warrant.
I would be DELIGHTED to see a post from a representative of Oxford University Press, HarperCollins, or Abingdon Press saying that you plan to reexamine your printing decisions. For what it's worth, whichever of you guys comes out with a physical product that approaches your outstanding scholarship, will have my order and another 100 to go with it.
P.S.: Anybody want 15 unreadable Bibles? I'm selling them cheap.