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UBS Publishers A Midsummer Nights Dream 2003 Edition by William Shakespeare
Joseph Andrews Has Been Acclaimed As One Of The Richest, Funniest And Sanest Novels In The Realm Of English Literature. This Novel Essentially Contrasts The Confusion And Chaos Prevailing In London With The Clam And Serenity Of The Countryside. But The Journey Which Fielding'S Characters Undertake Is Not Merely Geographical. He Makes Them Go Through A Series Of Confusing Episodes Which Depicts Them In Their True Colours Within The Social Framework Of Their Times.About The Author:William Shakespeare, 1564 - 1616 Although There Are Many Myths And Mysteries Surrounding William Shakespeare, A Great Deal Is Actually Known About His Life. He Was Born In Stratford-Upon-Avon, Son Of John Shakespeare, A Prosperous Merchant And Local Politician And Mary Arden, Who Had The Wealth To Send Their Oldest Son To Stratford Grammar School. At 18, Shakespeare Married Anne Hathaway, The 27-Year-Old Daughter Of A Local Farmer, And They Had Their First Daughter Six Months Later. He Probably Developed An Interest In Theatre By Watching Plays Performed By Traveling Players In Stratford While Still In His Youth. Some Time Before 1592, He Left His Family To Take Up Residence In London, Where He Began Acting And Writing Plays And Poetry. By 1594 Shakespeare Had Become A Member And Part Owner Of An Acting Company Called The Lord Chamberlain'S Men, Where He Soon Became The Company'S Principal Playwright. His Plays Enjoyed Great Popularity And High Critical Acclaim In The Newly Built Globe Theatre. It Was Through His Popularity That The Troupe Gained The Attention Of The New King, James I, Who Appointed Them The King'S Players In 1603. Before Retiring To Stratford In 1613, After The Globe Burned Down, He Wrote More Than Three Dozen Plays (That We Are Sure Of) And More Than 150 Sonnets. He Was Celebrated By Ben Jonson, One Of The Leading Playwrights Of The Day, As A Writer Who Would Be "Not For An Age, But For All Time," A Prediction That Has Proved To Be True. Today, Shakespeare Towers Over All Other English Writers And Has Few Rivals In Any Language. His Genius And Creativity Continue To Astound Scholars, And His Plays Continue To Delight Audiences. Many Have Served As The Basis For Operas, Ballets, Musical Compositions, And Films. While Jonson And Other Writers Labored Over Their Plays, Shakespeare Seems To Have Had The Ability To Turn Out Work Of Exceptionally High Caliber At An Amazing Speed. At The Height Of His Career, He Wrote An Average Of Two Plays A Year As Well As Dozens Of Poems, Songs, And Possibly Even Verses For Tombstones And Heraldic Shields, All While He Continued To Act In The Plays Performed By The Lord Chamberlain'S Men. This Staggering Output Is Even More Impressive When One Considers Its Variety. Except For The English History Plays, He Never Wrote The Same Kind Of Play Twice. He Seems To Have Had A Good Deal Of Fun In Trying His Hand At Every Kind Of Play. Shakespeare Wrote 154 Sonnets, All Published On 1609, Most Of Which Were Dedicated To His Patron Henry Wriothsley, The Earl Of Southhampton. He Also Wrote 13 Comedies, 13 Histories, 6 Tragedies, And 4 Tragecomedies. He Died At Stratford-Upon-Avon April 23, 1616, And Was Buried Two Days Later On The Grounds Of Holy Trinity Church In Stratford. His Cause Of Death Was Unknown, But It Is Surmised That He Knew He Was Dying.Special Features:School Library Journal Vol. 54 Iss. 5 P. 153 (C) 05/01/2008Gr 7 Up –Shakespeare'S Classic Play Is Retold With A Significant Effort By The Publisher To Preserve The Language And Tone Of The Original. And It'S A Successful Effort; The Dialogue Remains Mostly Intact And Brown'S Clever Layouts Do A Good Job Of Both Staging The Action And Providing A Well-Paced Breakdown Of The Shakespearean English, So That New Or Young Readers Will Be Better Able To Comprehend The Sometimes-Arcane Language. However, Brown Has A Curious Tendency To Have The Flow Of Word Balloons Drift From Right To Left. With This Oel Adaptation Paging From Left To Right, This Occasionally Makes The Pages Mildly Confusing To Read. An Additional Distraction Is The Decision To Have The Play Set In An Alternate World Where People Dress In Roman Robes Over Mod-Style Shirts And Trousers, And Where Futuristic Telecoms Exist Alongside Antique Swords. And While The Figure Work May Not Be Everyone'S Cup Of Tea–The Boys Are Cute In A Yaoi Sort Of Way, While The Girls Have A Wide-Eyed Awkwardness, And Noses Disappear And Reappear Continually–The Storytelling And Layouts Show A High Level Of Craft And Succeed In Portraying Much Of The Humor Of The Play.–Benjamin Russell, Belmont High School, Nh