The Complete English Poems (Everyman's Library classics) (ISBN 185715097X)

bad edition:
I don't like the endnotes vs. footnotes which are very hard to access and deal with, and I don't like the way the apostrophes are taken out and the words are 'modernized' as it breaks up the flows and rhythms of the works.

A Good Version:
The anonymous review from "reader from the UK" has a slight whiff about it, I can't help but think - does the reviewer work at the publishers? I wouldn't quite go as far as he/she has in my praise. This is a good version, if not exactly the best. The poetry of course is unchallengeable - it's what's been done with the poetry that is important. The text is clear and easy to read; the notes are put at the back of the book, which is always a mixed blessing, but is probably the only practical option with a decently-annotated Milton. This version is cheaper than the definitive Fowler and Carey versions, and probably better for the non-specialist reader. The notes are good enough, but I would like more narrative guidance (in Paradise Lost particularly); occasionally some of his notes feel incomplete or unclear, and sometimes he leaves things out which I myself would have liked him to have mentioned or which I've seen mentioned (or reinterpreted) by someone else. I would also prefer a longer and more detailed introduction. But mostly the version is good, and is probably the first stop for most readers wanting to get to grips with Milton. My advice is only to go on from here, to other sources to give you a more detailed background.

Perfect edition of Milton from everynan's:
This everyman's edition does not seem to the edition rated below by others because this has footnotes and not endnotes./ In addition to a wondeful introduction it also contains Aereopagetica and on education which i did not expect from the title. I was pleasanly surpiused by this organzation of the book. Thise works give a good overview of the works, =. Please excuse typos i have a neurologic disease.

The greatness of Milton "They also serve who only stand and wait":
Milton's greatness is evident not only in his greatest work 'Paradise Lost' but also in 'Samson Agonistes' and the finest elegy in the language , " Lycidas".It is present in his sonnets and shorter pieces also , and " On His Blindness" is one of the great poems of world - literature. Milton is a poet of the ear, and there is a powerful music in his verse. His tremendous learning may complicate his poetry for the modern reader, but there are depths in his lines for those who truly probe them.

Text corrupted by modernization:
It's fine, to a point, to modernize spellings of certain words, provided it doesn't alter the pronunciation (changing "Sion" to "Zion" is a no-no). However, the editors of this volume have also chosen to modernize punctuation to the point that it screws up the rhythm. For example, the contraction "th'Aonian mount" that appears in the opening of Paradise Lost becomese "the Aonian", as if modern readers wouldn't be able to figure it out on their own. This kind of meddling adds extra syllables to lines, screwing up Milton's metre and also insulting the intelligence of readers. If you want a really fine edition, shell out some extra cash for the Hughes volume.