
- Man, full of self-importance, demands loyalty before dividing wealth among his children.
- Women don pantsuits, want to be taken seriously by society.
- Ruler faces high level of criticism due to Middle Eastern descent.
- Husband disappears in Aleppo; Powerful men, claiming to be ordained by God, fight to rule a country, no matter the consequences.
- Teen runs away from home; parents heartbroken. [1]
- Man persecuted due to his religion and his job. [2]
Over 16 years, I surveyed a variety of versions for young adult audiences. Without a doubt, the Cambridge School Shakespeare series captures the wide interests of many readers. With the original text on the right side, the left side provides a one-to-two sentence summary of events, comprehension questions, and vocabulary definitions. Photos from different productions are strewn throughout the books, highlighting the role of costumes, set design, and actor interpretations. The last 30 pages provide a brief summary of the whole play, character summaries, imagery and thematic explorations, as well as ideas to help explore interpretations of the plays.
Will's Words: How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk
William Shakespeare & The Globe
The World of Shakespeare
See Inside the World of Shakespeare
Shakespeare: His Words and His World
While I did not include books with Shakespeare as a character or books that create Shakespearean mysteries, I cannot leave out, in good conscious, The Wednesday Wars, which is the best argument for why Shakespeare is relevant to today’s young adults. For all the middle schoolers who will not budge an inch.