Michel de Montaigne
M. A. Screech · 1991
M. A. Screech's Penguin 'Complete Essays' is the one I'd start with — idiomatic, engaging, and built on the most recent scholarship while staying faithful. The most enjoyable complete Montaigne to actually read. This is where I'd start.
Donald M. Frame · 1957
Donald Frame's translation (Everyman's 'Complete Works') is the acknowledged classic — accurate, sensitive, fluent, and it includes the travel journal and letters too. The scholar's standard, a touch smoother than Screech.
John Florio · 1603
John Florio's 1603 translation is the Montaigne that Shakespeare read — public domain, gloriously Elizabethan, and free. More a historical pleasure than a smooth first read, but unlike anything modern. Free and complete.
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