Graphic Shakespeare: Othello - a review

I was working on a collection development project and picked up this copy of Othello from my library in search of a good graphic Shakespeare.  If you have any suggestions, please feel free to share them!

Graphic Shakespeare: Othello 
Adaptation by Vincent Goodwin
Graphic Planet, 2008

A fair introduction to a Shakespearean classic. The back matter includes a glossary, as well as notes on the play, Shakespeare, and the graphic novel adapters. This information would have been more useful as an introduction, as the first act is difficult to follow if the reader is not already familiar with the play.The dialogue retains a Shakespearean flavor, and it should be noted that not all unfamiliar words appear in the glossary. (I had to look up "bawn" in an online dictionary.)

The illustrated characters, besides Desdemona, have a dark and serious cast befitting this tragic play. Scenes featuring Desdemona offer the only break from the furtive treachery talking place in dark corners.The oversized dialogue bubbles, rather than the illustrations, often drive the story.
Othello is part of the Graphic Shakespeare series by Graphic Planet.

For young kids, I absolutely LOVE First Second's Stratford Zoo Midnight Review presents Macbeth.  (There's a "Romeo and Juliet" too, and I hope more to follow) My review is linked above.

Will's Words - a review

Will's Words: How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk by Jane Sutcliffe.  Illustrated by John Shelly.  2016, Charlesbridge. 

According to author Jane Sutcliffe's note, she intended to write a book about the Globe Theater and its famous playwright, but found she was more interested in the way that William Shakespeare's words (even the invented ones!) have become so ingrained in our everyday speech. 

The end result is somewhat of a hybrid.  Two types of text boxes are placed upon each double-spread, full-bleed illustration.  One contains an account of life in the time and milieu of William Shakespeare,

Good plays need good playwrights.  And the most brilliant playwright in London was Mr. William Shakespeare. From butchers and bakers, to lords and ladies, everyone looked forward to the excitement of a Will Shakespeare play.

While the other explains one or more of Shakespeare's words,

WILL'S WORD: Excitement
WHAT IT MEANS: A feeling of "Bring it on!"  This was a fairly new word in Will's time.  He helped people get excited about "excitement."
WHERE IT COMES FROM: HAMLET, ACT 4, SCENE 4.  There's a lot of excitement in Hamlet's family.  And not the good kind.

The "Will's Word" text boxes are displayed on a facsimile of parchment paper - a nice touch.  If John Shelley's illustrations don't necessarily capture the squalor of the time, they certainly capture the essence of living in a seething mass of humanity.  The pen, ink, and watercolor illustrations are positively teeming with activity - providing opportunity for exploring hundreds of small details in each scene.

I chose to highlight one of the shorter passages.  However, there are more than fifteen scenes packed with information presented in a lively, conversational tone that will keep readers' attention.  Teachers should love this one.

The book goes on sale today.  Look for it on a library shelf soon.  If you choose to purchase it, you will receive the gift of more words from Shakespeare, your "money's worth."


Author's Notes, Timeline, and Bibliography are included.

• Download the Activity Guide with Reader's Theater for Will's Words here.

Note:
My copy of Will's Words was provided by the publisher at my request. 

The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue Presents Macbeth - a review

Bruce Coville has done wonderful adaptations of several Shakespearean plays for a young audience, while staying faithful to the mood and dialogue wherever possible.  Now, however, there's a new, edgier, funny Shakespeare in town.  You may have seen many adaptations for the works of Shakespeare, but you've never seen them done like this. 

I present The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue. I was laughing out loud on the very first page!

Lendler, Ian. 2014. The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue Presents Macbeth. New York: First Second.

(Advance Reader Copy)

A hilarious, graphic novel version of "Macbeth" as performed and attended by the denizens of The Stratford Zoo after the keeper has left for the evening. 

Join them in their seats (avoid the skunk!), grab a snack of rotting carrion from the vendors, and enjoy the play!  Panels featuring frequent audience commentary are done in darkened tones to denote the dim lighting of audience seating.  The play's action onstage is presented in bold color.

See interior images at First Second's website.

Intermission occurs when the zookeeper makes an unexpected late-night sweep of the zoo's grounds.

If you're a humor or comic book fan, Lendler and illustrator, Zack Giallongo, present this Shakespeare classic "as you like it" - brief, humorous, and to the point. Teachers and parents, this is a perfect introduction to Shakespeare for the young people in your life.  

(Alternatively, read it yourself and then head out to see some Shakespeare in the park this summer! I'll be seeing Shakespeare by the Sea.)

Due on shelves in September. This is the first in a series.  Look for "Romeo and Juliet" next.

Monday Morning Miscellany v. 4

 Here's the latest version of  Monday Morning Miscellany. I hope you find some news you can use.

• If you haven't heard already, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel will be out on November 13, 2012.  Get all the details on the Diary of a Wimpy Kid site.  Dog Days, the movie, will be out on August 3.  Jeff Kinney's website answered my earlier question - Why is the 3rd movie titled after the 4th book?  Apparently, the movie is a mashup of The Last Straw and Dog Days. Mystery solved. Enjoy!

• The best news of my day?  Catherynne Valente has penned a new Fairyland book: The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There.  I have not see it as I write this post on Sunday, but rumor has it that The Book Rat will post the book's trailer on August 30.   I'll be checking that out for sure! The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of her own Making was my favorite book of 2011.  It's going to be hard to wait until October, for this one! 

• Don't have time to check all of your favorite blogs every day? Have you tried the Carnival of Children's Literature?  Bloggers are invited to contribute their best or favorite kidlit-related post of the month. The July Carnival of Children's Literature is available now. Anastasia Suen of Booktalking is the host. 

• It's Nonfiction Monday again. Today's host is Check it Out.  If you're a regular reader or contributor, please note the new Nonfiction Monday "about" page.  It appears that Anastasia, our roundup coordinator, has finally found a place of her own on the Internet.  Best wishes with your new site, Anastasia!   Next week's Nonfiction Monday roundup will be here!  Please join me.

Shakespeare by the Sea

•  Last night I enjoyed a small-scale production of Shakespeare's "A Comedy of Errors," in a lovely nearby park.  The performance was preceded by a short lecture in which I learned the following: Although the average modern speaker of English has a vocabulary of approximately 7,500 words, in the time of Shakespeare, the average vocabulary was a mere 500 words!  (My husband, a man of few words, noted that he could probably get by with only 500. I believe him.)  Shakespeare, on the other hand, found it limiting.  So much so, that he added approximately 2,000 words to the English language.  Fascinating! 

And one final tidbit of "noteworthy" news ...

• In what may be the first and last instance of its kind, my daughter loved her required summer reading book, Nathaniel Philbrick's, National Book Award winner, In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex.   Personally, I can offer no greater accolade. Read a chapter from In the Heart of the Sea here.

Have a great week!

39 Clues - the end?

A quick wrap up of the final two audiobooks in the 39 Clues series - as with all the other titles, David Pittu narrates -

Park, Linda Sue. 2010. The 39 Clues: Storm Warning (Book 9). New York: Scholastic.

...in which Dan and Amy are reunited (finally), the true secrets of the Madrigals are revealed, the hunt moves to Jamaica, and the death of someone not connected to the hunt deeply affects Dan, Amy, and Nellie. Oh yes, and one more thing, most excellent reader, David Pittu, finally finds an accent that's too hard to handle - Jamaican patois.

Haddix, Margaret Peterson. 2010. The 39 Clues: Into the Gauntlet. (Book 10). New York: Scholastic.

In this longest of all the 39 Clues titles, the Starlings return to play a major role (remember them from the bomb blast at the Franklin Institute?) and all of the clues are finally revealed as the hunt moves to London. 

The series did not wrap up as I had anticipated and surprisingly, the door has been left open for further adventures.  All in all, it was a good run.  Kids love the series and it keeps them reading.

And a surprise addition -

The Shakespeare Stealer

Blackwood, Gary. 2000. The Shakespeare Stealer. New York: Puffin. ISBN:0141305959.


(first published in 1998)


This is not a new book, but since it still appears on school summer reading lists, I thought I'd try it.


The Shakespeare Stealer is a historical fiction adventure, featuring Widge, a poor orphan boy, recently apprenticed to first one, and then another unsavory master. As a "prentice," Widge is unfamiliar with the concepts of freedom, choice, honesty, and friendship. For Widge, life is merely a series of events over which he has no control; he survives them, or he does not.


When Widge's new master gives him the task of stealing William Shakespeare's latest play, The Tragedy of Hamlet: Prince of Denmark, he thinks of it as nothing more than another of life's turns. He will steal the play or be severely beaten. Only after Widge ingratiates himself with the Lord Chamberlain's Men, Shakespeare's acting company, does he realizes that, while life may be a grand stage upon which we are all actors, we have the ability to play our part as we choose.

The historical details are threaded into the story creating a rich tapestry which includes period dialogue, anecdotes about Shakespeare and his contemporaries, and an insider's view of theater life in Elizabethan London. The message of honesty, loyalty and friendship may be a bit heavy-handed, but the story line is full of intrigue and adventure; the action is fast-paced and exciting. My library has this book in the young adult (YA) section, but it would make a fine choice for grade 6 and up.

An ALA Notable Children's Book Award winner

There are two more books in this series: Shakespeare's Scribe and Shakespeare's Spy

The Wednesday Wars

Schmidt, Gary D. 2007. The Wednesday Wars. New York: Clarion.

I’m behind in my posting, so this will be brief. I thoroughly enjoyed The Wednesday Wars, a humorous and touching book about Holling Hoodhood, the 7th grade son of an up an coming architect in 1967. The story derives its name from the afternoons that Holling must spend alone with his teacher, Mrs. Baker. Being the only Presbyterian in the class, Holling is the only student that does not have Hebrew school or CCD on Wednesdays.

Against the backdrop of the Vietnam War and household strife between his “hippie” sister and establishment father, the gruff and business-like Mrs. Baker, imparts a love of Shakespeare to a confused Holling.

While some of the events seem far-fetched, (e.g., 7th grade Holling rescuing his sister from a disastrous road trip west, the many escapades of the rats living in the ceiling tiles) they did not detract from the overall story. Holling’s first person account of his 1967 school year had me laughing out loud and crying as well. An added bonus - I'd be surprised if anyone reading this book did not have an urge to reread Shakespeare's greatest plays. I may have to check out Hamlet myself. A great book.

PS - This is another YA title that I think would easily fit a J audience - perhaps the protagonist's age prompted the YA cataloging.