'At last, with A Barthes Reader, we have a sort of Michelin guide to one of
the most beguiling minds of our era. Smartly introduced by Susan Sontag,
the Reader samples Barthes' achievement over three decades'

'To read through A Barthes Reader is finally to be left with the image of
Barthes as one of the great public teachers of our time, someone who
thought out, argued for, and made available several steps in a penetrating
reflection on language, sign systems, texts - and what they have to tell us
about the concept of the human'

'Susan Sontag makes a convincing argument for Barthes the Great Writer...What is new about Barthes' posthumous reputation is the view of him as a writer whose books of criticism and personal musing must be admired as serious and beautiful works of the imagination'