"Howard's attention to detail and his deft appreciation of linguistic formulas return the reader's attention to the power of Dante's poetry, and this in itself represents a powerful scholarly achievement. Arguments about the interpretation of classical poeti in the context of Dante's work might never be resolved, but Howard should certainly be ranked among the right readers of Dante's poetry." Renaissance Quarterly "Previous scholarship has never quite fully explored the issue of Virgil's authority in all its implications, as this study does. It is not only original in its principal idea and execution, but also an advance in Dante scholarship and in the way we understand the very important figure of Virgil." Massimo Verdicchio, Professor of Italian Studies and Comparative Literature, University of Alberta "By focusing on the Virgilian "thread" Howard provides some plausible new ways of considering how the poem is permeated by Dante's great literary model and guide ... he leads the reader to consider once more the phenomenal control of detail that marks the great poem. Summing Up: Recommended." R. West, University of Chicago