Monday, May 24, 2010

Reduced Shakespeare: The Complete Guide for the Attention-Impaired [abridged] by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor

No spoilers?

Title:
Reduced Shakespeare: The Complete Guide for the Attention Impaired [abridged]
Author: Reed Martin and Austen Tichenor (of the Reduced Shakespeare Company)
Year of Publication: 2006
Genre: NonFiction
Pages: 234
First Line: "Why have we written this book? Let us count the ways:. . ."

Summary: From the Reduced Shakespeare Company -- the theater troupe whose side-splitting production The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) was the longest-running comedy in London -- comes an openly hysterical, yet surprisingly informative, guide to everything you always wanted to know about Shakespeare -- but couldn't be bothered to ask.

Believe it or not, Shakespeare's plays were the summer blockbusters of his day -- everyone loved them, from royalty to ragamuffins. The Reduced Shakespeare Company takes Shakespeare off his pedestal and puts the fun back into the work of the greatest playwright the world has ever known -- and teaches you something while they're at it!

Source: Back of book


Review: Hil-ar-i-ous. Seriously, if you want to learn about Shakespeare but can't sit through a "real" biography or whatever, this is the book for you. Make sure you read the footnotes and the annotated bibliography. I will say that some of the humor may go over your head if you know very little about Will. I know there were a few things that were written where I was scratching my head, wondering if the authors were joking or not. Aside from that, it's a great book with a lot of information and laughs.

Worst part: It has spoilers for all the plays. They're easy to avoid, though.

Best part: It was so funny. Seriously.

Grade: A-

Other Books by This Author: None.


38 / 50 books. 76% done!

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