Tales from Shakespeare: Children's Classics (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Mary Lamb (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up-An introduction to the plots of 20 of Shakespeare's plays by Charles and Mary Lamb. Narrated by Flo Gibson.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Product Description

In the twenty tales told in this book, Charles & Mary Lamb succeeded in paraphrasing the language of truly adult literature in children’s terms. Let us not underestimate young readers: they love a complex story with many and varied characters, twists of plot, and turns of fate as much as anyone — but they draw the line at reading in unfamiliar language. The Lambs provide a real feast of plain fare, and flavor it with as many tasty tidbits of Shakespearean language as they felt the young reader could easily digest. This deluxe Children’s Classic edition is produced with high-quality, leatherlike binding with gold stamping, full-color covers, colored endpapers with a book nameplate. Some of the other titles in this series include: Anne of Green Gables, Black Beauty, King Arthur and His Knights, Little Women, and Treasure Island.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Children's Classics (August 17, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517205742
• ISBN-13: 978-0517205747
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #220,005 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Intro to Shakespeare, April 22, 2000

By A Customer

Although this book is written for children it is great for all ages and is great to get the basic story line before you go to a play. I read most of the plays in this book (I have not yet read all of them) when I was 11. Now that I have been reading the actual plays of Shakespeare I always start by reading the short version of the play in this book and than read the actual play. I can understand what is going on much better that way. I also recommend "Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare for Children" by Edith Nesbit which gives about ten page versions of each story verses the thirty pages per story in this book and also has a smaller vocabulary which makes it better for younger children.

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read it as a child and now use it as a professor, January 12, 2005

By	Poppiti (Medford, NY United States) - See all my reviews

I remember my father giving me this book when I was young. He was a junior high school english teacher and used this book in class. Together we read the stories and I loved them. Now I am a college professor and use the book in class myself. While some of the summaries are "dated," they are still useful in communicating the basic action of the play to students and the very fact that they are "dated" allows the book to serve as an illustration of how interpretations of Shakespeare's plays have changed since the Lambs' time.

I recommend this book heartily.

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great intro for kids, June 20, 2005

By	Coreen A. Costello (Los Angeles, Ca USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

When I first began homeschooling my children I came across this book. Since we were to soon see a high school production of Midsummer's Night Dream I read the Lamb version aloud to them before seeing the performance. The results were amazing. My children had no previous exposure to Shakespeare. The Lamb's ability to retain some of Shakespeare's original language greatly enhanced their comprehension. They loved the story and we able to follow the play with ease, laughing and clearly enjoying themselves much to the frustration of some nearby adults who were completely lost. This book helped begin their love affair with Sir William. I am of the opinion reading a well summarized version of his plays and then watching a well done performance will make any child appreciate the genius that is Shakespeare's work.