William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (Barron's Book Notes) [Paperback]

William Shakespeare (Author), Robert Owens Scott (Author)

Book Description

Series: Barron's Book Notes | Publication Date: April 1985

A guide to reading "Twelfth Night" with a critical and appreciative mind. Includes background on the author's life and times, sample tests, term paper suggestions, and a reading list.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-8-In this verbal and visual treat, readers have the opportunity to enjoy one of Shakespeare's best-loved comedies. Coville's author's note explains that his prose adaptation is "not meant as a replacement for the original, but as an appetizer for the greater feast still to come." Thus, the story is clear and carefully told, making it easy both to follow the primary and secondary plot lines and to appreciate the intricacies of their interweavings. Coville keeps the flavor of the playwright's poetic language by using actual quotes from the play and expressions and a formal sentence structure true to the style of Elizabethan times. Delightful full-page, colored pen-and-ink illustrations add just the right touch of humor to the already wacky tale. Raglin gives a distinctive identity to all of the characters, despite their attempted disguises, and he does a particularly good job of differentiating the buffoons of the subplot from the more realistically drawn dramatis personae. Colors and designs clearly suggest the Italian court dress of the times, and accurate architectural details add life to the settings. More suited to modern audiences than Charles and Mary Lamb's classic Tales from Shakespeare (Signet, 1986), and far better written than Jan Dean's Twelfth Night (Oxford, 2002), this is a version that will have young listeners begging to portray the Bard's scenes onstage. And, isn't that, after all, the whole point?-Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, LaSalle Academy, Providence, RI
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 3-6. The latest in Coville's series of retold Shakespearean plays, this volume provides a short, prose version of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, a romantic comedy that offers young people such promising elements as separated twins, a woman disguised as a man, a drunken buffoon, courtship, swordplay, mistaken identity, and a practical joke. Though simplified, the story is intact and bits of the original language are preserved. Large-scale ink drawings, warmed with tints of color and shaded with cross-hatching, clearly depict the action. As Coville states in his Author's Note, "Twelfth Night remains one of the most read and performed of Shakespeare's plays." Children looking for a preperformance introduction to the play's twisting plot will find this an appealing choice. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 117 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series (April 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812035488
• ISBN-13: 978-0812035483
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,093,058 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Twelfth Night is a Twelve out of Ten, April 20, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Twelfth Night (Hardcover)

Originally written by William Shakespeare and retold by Bruce Coville, Twelfth Night is a wonderful book. Coville really captures the Shakespearean feel of the original in this delightful picture book. The story revolves around a young woman named Viola. The story begins as Viola finds herself in an unfamiliar land with no means of food or shelter. To survive in this new place she dresses as a man to go and work for the duke of the land, Orsino. It is not long before Viola develops strong feelings for the kind duke. However, Orsino is already infatuated with Lady Olivia. Orsino sends Viola to Lady Olivia to deliver his letters professing his love to her. Upon meeting the gentle messenger Olivia falls in love with her. Little does anyone know that the messenger is indeed a woman! It is all a crazy mess that is both comical and entertaining. Anyone looking for quality entertainment could find it in this great book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great introduction to Shakespearian comedy, June 2, 2007

By 

DJ Joe Sixpack (...in Middle America) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Twelfth Night (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful adaptation of one of Shakespeare's lighter works... Richly detailed artwork accompanies a brisk, skillful prose adaptation of this broad farce of mistaken identity and misplaced love... An ideal entry point for younger readers, one of several fine adaptations by Bruce Coville.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great idea!, March 26, 2007

By 

J. Wheeler "eowyn77" (Idaho, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Twelfth Night (Hardcover)

I love the stories that Bruce Coville writes, and was browsing some other books of his, when I saw that he had retold some of Shakespeare's plays for children. I first bought Romeo and Juliet, and have been buying them all as they come out. What a great way for kids (and adults) to learn about Shakespeare's plays! The illustrations are appropriate to the plays, and beautifully done. Twelfth Night, like the others, is well written and easy to read, and includes quotes from the play. I enjoyed this version of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.