From School Library Journal
Grade 10 Up—This live theater production of George Bernard Shaw's Major Barbara examines newsworthy questions about war, morality, and salvation. Set in pre-World War I London, the play opens as Lady Britomart brings together her adult children—Barbara, Sarah, and Stephe—with their long-estranged father, munitions mogul Andrew Undershaft. It appears that Undershaft will disinherit his children because his company has a tradition of giving the arms factory to a capable adult born out of wedlock. The children prefer to forgo their fortune, especially Barbara who has risen through the ranks of the Salvation Army. Barbara and her fiancé, Adolphus Cusins, face a dilemma when generous donations from Undershaft and a liquor manufacturer are the only way their organization can help London's poor. When it's learned that Cusins' parents aren't married under English law, Undershaft offers him the arms business. Will Cusins lose Barbara if he chooses the inheritance? Can he bring true reform if he owns the arms used for strife? The conclusion leaves some questions unanswered. Listeners may find it distracting that occasionally the audience responds to action not reflected in the script. The cast of 12 keeps the action lively and the dialogue crisp. It would have been helpful for teachers to have the CD case list the acts by track. Despite the serious topics, and sometimes protracted conversations on morality, this adaptation of Shaw's comedy has many thoroughly British, humorous moments. A supplemental purchase for high school library's supporting a British literature curriculum.—Barbara S. Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT
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Review
Optimized for the MobiPocket Reader, this is a very special edition of George Bernard Shaw's "Major Barbara." If you click on one of the words in the text, a convenient pop-up window appears with an English thesaurus for that word, which comes from Webster's Online Dictionary (www.websters-online-dictionary.org). Running throughout the text, uncommon English words are highlighted in blue that are likely to be found in examinations in English Language Programs (ELP), English as a Foreign Language (EFL) programs, or in English as a Second Language Programs (ESL). The highlighted vocabulary words are also likely to be found in Advanced Placement-(AP-), TOEFL-, TOEIC-, SAT-, PSAT- , GMAT-, LSAT-, GRE-, or similar examinations. TOEFL-, TOEIC-, GRE-, AP- and Advanced Placement- are trademarks of the Educational Testing Service; PSAT- is a registered trademark of the College Entrance Examination Board and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation; SAT- is a registered trademark of the College Board; GMAT- is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admissions Council; LSAT- is a registered trademark of the Law School Admissions Council. All rights reserved. These organizations neither sponsored nor are affiliated with this product.
About the Author
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) was an Irish playwright and critic, whose plays are famous for their wit, eloquence and interest in provocative ideas. Inspired mainly by the social dramas of Ibsen, he began to write plays of his own while working as an arts critic, though they were not performed until later. His play Mrs Warren's Profession was banned by the Lord Chamberlain until 1925. Unable to find commercial audiences for his plays, Shaw wrote extensive Prefaces for them, elaborating on the social and moral themes that they explore. Subsequent plays include Major Barbara, Pygmalion, Heartbreak House, Back to Methuselah, and Saint Joan. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1925, and an Academy Award in 1938, for the screenplay of the film adaptation of Pygmalion, a film which would later form the basis for My Fair Lady.
