The Tempest
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- $0.99
Publisher Description
Classic Shakespearean romance in English with line numbers and in German translation. According to Wikipedia: "The Tempest is a play written by William Shakespeare. Many scholars believe that it was written in 1610–11, although some researchers have argued for an earlier dating. While listed as a comedy when it was initially published in the First Folio of 1623, many modern editors have since re-labeled the play a romance. It did not attract a significant amount of attention before the closing of the theatres in 1642 and after the Restoration it attained popularity only in adapted versions. Theatre productions began to reinstate the original Shakespearean text in the mid-19th century, and in the 20th century, critics and scholars undertook a significant re-appraisal of the play's value, to the extent that it is now considered to be one of Shakespeare's greatest works."
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Prospero-like in their artistry, Spirin's dazzling watercolors dominate this retelling of Shakespeare's final play. Shaped like altar panels fit for a Renaissance church or palace, the illustrations are romantic, regal and magical, richly interpreting the play's themes of betrayal, revenge and all-conquering love. A wispy ethereal air pervades island scenes, beautifully suggesting the atmosphere of enchantment, while Antonio and the King of Naples are pictured in brocade and velvet, the stench of power upon them. The other characters, too, are both otherworldly and very much flesh and blood. Especially well rendered is the monster Caliban, shown here as part man, part beast, part mythical creature, a sense of evil glee lighting his features. While this prose adaptation does not, of course, retain the full magic of the Bard's work, Beneduce nonetheless provides an intelligent, gripping story. Several passages from Shakespeare introduced at key points give a taste of the original. Symbols and small pictures integrated into the text further enhance the lavish presentation. All ages.
