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[empyrean_aisles]

I am writing the acknowledgments for an edited book I've put together. As the volume had an interdisciplinary flavor to it, and I am not an expert in all the different disciplines which were covered by the chapters, I got each chapter blind reviewed by two people. (This is in addition to the reviews that the publishers put the MS through once the book was finished).

I would really like to thank each of the fine scholars who took the time and trouble to review the chapters for me. Some were quite famous people in their discipline and I was so grateful that they agreed to take on extra unpaid work for a complete nobody such as me. The book is definitely stronger and tighter because of their constructive critique.

However, because they were blind reviewers, I am concerned that listing them like this may compromise their anonymity. I will list them in a long list of about 30 names (which will also include friends & mentors who helped me with other things) so it won't be like there is a list of people who are obviously the reviewers. But the interdisciplinary nature of the volume means that there is quite a good chance that a few readers (including the authors of the individual chapters) will read my acknowledgments, see two famous names in their own sub-section of the field, and probably be able to deduce that I'm thanking those people because they acted as reviewers.

If you were a scholar with a distinctive name (& possibly quite a high profile in your field), would it make you mad if some junior person listed you in the acknowledgments of their book? It could be that some of these reviewers have forgotten that they even did this for me. I don't want to look like I'm name-dropping, I just want to acknowledge these kind people.

[lizzy]

If I were you, I'd ask.

Email them and ask if they would be comfortable having their names listed in the way you propose. Tell them essentially what you told us--you appreciate the work they did to make the volume stronger, and you'd like to recognize them by name. I suspect most of them will be pleased that you want to acknowledge them and that you asked permission to do so.

[empyrean_aisles]

I'm grateful to Lizzy for her response. I'd love to hear from others too.

[aristotelian]

I agree with lizzy. It could not hurt to ask, and most will surely appreciate being thanked by name. If you do it as a long list as you propose I do not think it would compromise their anonymity.

[jerseyjay]

I would ask.

But so long as you don't say they were reviewers, and their names are in a long list, I don't see how this would compromise them.

I would say something like, "This was an interdisciplinary book. I would like to thank the many experts who helped me navigate different fields. These include Dr. Big Shot,  Prof. Famous Pants, Herr Doktor Importante...." It is not clear whether they read the m.s., answered your questions, provided research materials, encouraged you, etc, etc.

[empyrean_aisles]

OP here. I've come back to report on how it went in case anyone with a similar query finds this thread in the future. I did email all the reviewers, and every single one of them wrote back to say yes, it was fine to mention them. Most had really nice messages, eg. they thanked me for including them in the acknowledgments, and/or for checking with them first, and also congratulating me on getting the book out. Only one (known for being eccentric) said 'Gracious. I have never received such a strange message' but s/he was still happy to be listed.

So, once again WWTFD triumphs as a methodology. Thank you friends.

[bookishone]

This is good to know. Thanks for posting the update!