I'm in with a book I hope you will include in your National Poetry Month plans and celebrations: Jennie Maizels POP-UP SHAKESPEARE by Reed Martin & Austin Tichenor (The Reduced Shakespeare Company).
Before we get to the book, I should tell you that my favorite Shakespeare so far has been:
1. the recorded version of "Hamlet" I listened to from a record player during a couple of weeks of my high school English class
2. a stage production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" I saw when I was in college
3. the Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes' 1996 Romeo + Juliet.
I am by no means a Shakespeare scholar, obviously. But I have appreciated and marveled at his contribution to literature and society. And I rather like the Shakespeare in Love romanticized version of Will... dreamy!
And what fun this book is! It starts with a "Welcome to the World of William Shakespeare" so readers get a sense of what it was like to live from 1564-1616 as Shakespeare did. There are flaps to lift and secret doors to discover. I've found something new each time I've looked at the book. And the best news? It makes Shakespeare's work a lot more accessible for younger readers.
Some things I especially loved discovering:
A list of words and phrases William Shakespeare invented, i.e. "amazement" and "zany."
Each play (yes, the book contains Shakespeare's COMPLETE WORKS) reduced to a few short words such as: for The Two Gentlemen of Verona: "Falling in love with your best friend's girlfriend is a bad idea."
Shakespeare's "lost" play Cardenio comes with the message "always make copies of your work."
These words about love: "Shakespeare often uses imagery of the sun, moon, and stars to represent love's vastness; flowers and trees to suggest love's fragility; and the weather to show love's turbulence and ever-changing quality. Love's a big subject."
The hidden "quotable quotes."
Shakespeare by the numbers, at the end of the book, i.e. 1 wife, 154 sonnets, 8 shipwrecks, 3 dogs. :)
This is a great gift to give someone (or yourself!) during National Poetry Month. Heck, you might even be inspired to write a sonnet or two... or at the very least, as suggested in this book, a Shakespearean Valentine?
Example: "To be or not to be your Valentine..." [open card] "...that is the question." :)
I have this and shared it a couple of weeks ago. It is a wonderful book. Love hearing your Shakespeare memories, too, Irene. Happy Friday!
ReplyDeleteI won this book online and am thrilled with it! It's all encompassing in a much more engaging way than my huge old Riverside edition!
ReplyDeleteLove!! ❤
ReplyDeleteElena was trying to make sure she had memorized her lines from Midsummer Night's Dream in the car the other day and I was pretty sure she was a little off with one of them because she had used the word "something." Did Shakespeare ever say "something"? I feel like he always turned to the most interesting word, so probably not. :)
(8 shipwrecks! That's quite a few!)
I remembered a "something"! It's from one of my favorite Shakespeare plays, too. ""By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes"
DeleteI won a copy of this but haven't cracked it open yet. Appreciate hearing your reactions. It looks fabulous!!
ReplyDeleteThis book looks incredible!!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm in! I'm not a huge lover of Shakespeare....it was hard for me in college. I don't know how I would have gotten through without the BBC video tapes I'd watch in the library basement. I think I got three shades paler that semester. But, I do appreciate any writer that plays with language like good ole Will. I will look for this book. Thanks for the rec.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for introducing me to this book. I have two friends who will LOVE it! My favorite Shakespeare was a production of Twelfth Night at Lincoln Center many years ago. Helen Hunt, Kyra Sedgwick, and Paul Rudd starred. It was a magical production I will never forget.
ReplyDeleteShakespeare needs to be a part of my continuing education. This seems like a fabulous place to begin!
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds like such a great introduction to Shakespeare. I remember being totally bored and confused by the language of Shakespeare until I hit my 11th grade honors English class. I had a teacher that brought Romeo and Juliet to life. Thanks to her, I learned to appreciate and even really like several of his works. I know my teacher would've loved to share this book, too.
ReplyDeleteHow fun! Have you seen their production, "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Abridged"? It's sooooo funny. We have it on DVD and have watched it MANY times.
ReplyDeleteAs a theater major in college, I have lots of happy memories and interesting stories related to Shakespeare— reading, acting, directing, watching. So how have I missed this book? I will surely have to remedy that!
ReplyDeleteHow charming, if I can say that about Shakespeare, although perhaps I can since the Bard invented "amazement" and zany." Fascinating book Irene, and I like the art on the front too, especially that little devil thanks for sharing it with us.
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