DK Readers: Welcome to the Globe: The Story of Shakespeare's Theatre (Level 4: Proficient Readers) [Hardcover]

Peter Chrisp (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2000 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: DK READERS

This Level 4 book is appropriate for proficient readers.

It is 1602, and the Globe has just opened in London. Come backstage for a tour of this famous theater! These 48-page books about fascinating subjects like pirates, mummies, and volcanoes are for proficient readers who can understand a rich vocabulary and challenging sentence structure. In addition to the stunning photographs, informative sidebars, and glossary, readers will find archival photographs and paintings. Averaging 4,500 to 5,000 words in length, Level 4 books are 40 percent pictures and 40 percent text. The Dorling Kindersley Readers combine an enticing visual layout with high-interest, easy-to-read stories to captivate and delight young bookworms who are just getting started. Written by leading children's authors and compiled in consultation with literacy experts, these engaging books build reader confidence along with a lifelong appreciation for nonfiction, classic stories, and biographies. There is a DK Reader to interest every child at every level, from preschool to grade 4.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5-Chrisp approaches the topic as though readers were tourists in old London. A cast of characters is introduced, some real, some fabricated, who would have frequented the theater. They describe their lives in and about the Globe. Richard Burbage explains how plays were staged and produced. A groundling tells how gangs of young apprentices search for entertainment, choosing bear baiting, football, and throwing apple cores at the players. An apple seller describes life when the plague comes. Illustrations and photographs are excellent, showing details of the building and the people. The large font makes reading less intimidating. Marginalia includes facts about the history of theater as well as life in 17th-century London. A final two-page spread shows the re-created Globe today and attests to Shakespeare's continued popularity. Aliki's William Shakespeare & the Globe (HarperCollins, 1999) is for the same audience, but focuses more on Shakespeare's life in relation to the Globe, and the re-creation of the theater in the late 1990s envisioned by Sam Wanamaker. This book will be useful where interest is high.
Carol Durusau, Newton County Public Library, Covington, GA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

...an interesting account of life in and around Shakespeare's Globe Theater... -- Home Education Magazine

Illustrations and photographs are excellent... -- School Library Journal

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: DK CHILDREN (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789466414
• ISBN-13: 978-0789466419
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,676,980 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Through, fun and a smart read!, August 23, 2003

By 

Browyn Brough "excitedteacher" (vegas area, rural) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: DK Readers: Welcome to the Globe: The Story of Shakespeare's Theatre (Level 4: Proficient Readers) (Paperback)

If you were only going to get 3 or 4 books about Shakespeare, this really should be the first! It is done in the DK style format (even if your not a big fan of this style this book makes a great exception to the rule)and the pages are covered with info and pictures. This is the first one of these readers level style that was meaty and entertaining. Well, Well done!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 1/2* The Play's the Thing--and More!, September 23, 2002

By 

M. Allen Greenbaum (California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: DK Readers: Welcome to the Globe: The Story of Shakespeare's Theatre (Level 4: Proficient Readers) (Hardcover)

This book transports you to 1602 London and its famous Globe theater, the venue for some of Shakespeare's greatest plays. One of its many strengths is that it is told in first person narrative by multiple characters: A young male character actor playing a woman as well as Richard Burbage, perhaps the most famous Shakespearian actor of the time, an apple seller struggling to make a living during a time of plague, a wealthy theater-goer and a poor one, a pickpocket, and Burbage's brother, Cuthbert, the force being the building of the Globe.

The narratives and sidebars are full of interesting facts and" asides, from the major types of plays and play-goers ("people whose clothes were thought to be too expensive [for their station]...were arrested and fined." There's an excellent section on Richard Burbage and his techniques, along with details on stage production, the history upon which Henry V was based, and the tricks that kept audiences spellbound.

Highlighting both the high and low culture/classes of the period, "Welcome to the Globe" gives a fresh and colorful presentation on a subject many school-age children might otherwise find distant and boring. There's an intimacy to the narratives that complements the panoramic view of the broader culture in which the plays thrived. The book may interest readers into further exploration not only of the theater, but of culture, history, and science. The scope and quality here yields yet another DK hit!