St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica (5 volume set) Paperback – June 1, 1981

The binding is weak or defective. Volume one’s front cover detached almost immediately and now volume two is starting to go. This is with 15 minutes of reading in each volume on a rotating basis, one volume a day, for the past 3 months. I was hoping to get through the Summa in 5 years, but at this rate they will be individual pages by then! At least I won’t have to lug around the whole volume for my daily readings; )I fairness, I have read sitting with the volume at 45 degrees on my lap which probably torques the binding more than sitting at a table.I plan to study book binding and perhaps bind them in leather so they will be an heirloom, or maybe just pray and meditate on his words more.

I like the cover and the content, readable and the quality of paper is also good. It is excellent for those who wanted to deepen their understanding of the faith.

Not for me . I fell asleep every time I tried to read my homework for philosophy class in college. My husband asked for it for Christmas. He’s happy. I think it’s way too expensive.

Granted, the price was a bit much. However, the quality and translation of this set is wonderful! They arrived in good condition and the "blue" cover is actually a "navy" rather than a "royal." The text is decent enough to read (regarding the size) and the dark print is a great quality. As a Grad student in Theology, I wish I had these during my undergrad in Religion. It makes studying Aquinas so much easier by being able to highlight and make notations without having to scroll on a web page. Additionally, the index and outline for each book help to find the particular section or question you need. All-in-all, this is a worthy buy. Even if you are not a student in theology, Aquinas' work is very inspiring and helpful regarding the Christian faith!

It's the Summa! It's St. Thomas Aquinas! Enough said.A family member had this set of Summa Theologica books on her wedding gift registry. As her Godmother, I was thrilled to select this beautiful set for her and her soon to be husband. I plan to add holy cards, bookmarks, cash, notes, etc. randomly throughout the pages as a special surprise for them to find.

My husband has a masters in philosophy and loves reading St. Thomas. I bought as a gift and he was thrilled. A good value. He was surprised.

I spent a few weeks trying to figure out if I wanted a hard copy of the Summa, and if so which version. Glad I went with this one.A previous commenter raised concerns about how the small size of the margins at the binding made it impossible to read portions of lines of text in the middle of the volumes. I too saw this flaw in previous printings of this edition of the Summa, but the publisher has corrected the problem and increased the margin size at the binding. I checked all 5 volumes when they came in, and they all have large enough margins at the binding to allow the reader to easily see the entirety of each line of text.That said, the margins are still small: 1/4 inch on the sides, 1/2 to 3/4 inch on the top and bottom of the page.Text is easy to read, and the volumes are easy to hold. They're about the size and weight of a church hymnal. Definitely happy we made this investment in our family's library!

How can one over-emphasize the role St. Thomas Aquinas 'Summa Theologica' has played in the modern mind, let alone the Christian one? Whether you are Protestant, Catholic, or Orthodox, Thomas' masterwork is a must for anyone who is seriously interested in systematic or historical theology, the history of philosophy or philosophy generally, and anyone who would like to know what one of the most erudite minds in the history of Western Christendom has said on the nature of God, humankind, and everything in between.That said, it is not for the casual reader. The precision and depth of Thomas' inquiries suppose a background in philosophy (at least Aristotle), but are not prohibitive for someone who is interested in mining the insights of St. Thomas on particular theological questions. Philosophical insight makes this inquiry easier, but the Summa can speak for itself nonetheless.