It is notable that Deborah Boyle’s guide to Mary Shepherd’s work appears as part of the Oxford Guides to Philosophy—a series that aims to present concise and accessible introductions to “the most important primary texts in the history of philosophy” (ii). Even a decade ago, close to no philosophers or historians of philosophy would have recognized Shepherd’s name.[1] Over the past several years, however, the situation has changed drastically. Prominent experts studying early modern and modern thinkers now see Shepherd as (...) vital to our histories of ideas. Many others now regularly teach her works in undergraduate and graduate classrooms. And the secondary literature is expanding rapidly. (shrink)