Hamlet

Bruce Coville's rendition of the famous Hamlet is an excellent read for children, educators and parents alike. It has intrigued my son about Shakespeare and prompted us to order this series of books because he wants to know more about the other characters and stories in the world of Shakespeare! We are learning that it is often challenging to find appropriate reading material for children whose skills in reading are above their grade level for their age and maturity. This book is listed on the Accelerated Reader Program at grade 5.5 for my son's elementary school point-based school reading program, and it is also highly appropriate for a eight to nine year old child to read. The characters and plot development are interesting but not too hard for a young child to comprehend and actually enjoy. The art and presentation of the book are age appropriate as well as beautifully done. Thank you Bruce Coville, for bringing Shakespeare into our home so early!

Alas, poor Yorick! If only this book had been available to me in middle school so many years ago, I might have enjoyed the Shakespeare studies in college! Coville deftly, delicately weaves the intricate tale of Hamlet, remaining true to Shakespeare's milieu, language, and character, but illuminating the plot with action and suspense. It is an exciting presentation that would leave students hungry for more Shakespeare; Coville is a miracle-worker. Many of the more famous lines of the play are left intact, making it easy for teachers to draw parallels between Coville's version and the original. This is not surprising, considering Coville's background as an actor, playwright, and teacher. Gore's illustrations are just right: cloudy, dark, filled with despair, and yet too interesting to ignore. Exploring his shadowy pastel and linework technique would make a great classroom exercise to further illuminate the story line. This is a book that obviously was carefully and lovingly crafted; I would strongly recommend it as an addition to all middle school libraries.

Coville, a veteran writer who notes he has been studying Hamlet for 30 years, makes a coherent narrative from this eternally unruly story, leavening it with direct quotes from Shakespeare's play. Even dialogue, however, is often emended, albeit richly in a modern idiom. Gore wields acrylics and pastels to fine atmospheric effect using a palette of alternating deep blues or burnished browns lightened with white and gold. His figures slip into and out of the foreground like actors on a stage, and the ghost is magnificent. For middle schoolers not quite ready for the real thing, this works.