The Young Reader's Shakespeare: Romeo & Juliet
Grade 5-8–McKeown starts out slowly in this prose retelling, but quickly picks up the pace and carries readers along using entertaining language studded with Shakespeare's own words. Like the best movie and theater productions, this book leads readers to hope–even though they know the ultimate outcome–that everything will work out. Even though this version offers some interesting information about the play and about Shakespeare, it succeeds most in offering the story for readers' enjoyment. The endnotes include frequently asked questions, a list of characters and their relationships, and an index. The illustrations appear to be ink sketches colored in with watercolor. Only a few of them rise above the ordinary. Michael Rosen'sShakespeare's Romeo and Juliet(Candlewick, 2003) is for the same age range, but is more closely linked to the play. Bruce Coville'sWilliam Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet(Dial, 1999) is for a younger audience but is equally enjoyable. McKeown retells the story as a novel with chapter divisions and no reference to the play within the text. If you have Rosen's retelling, you probably do not need this one, but it does capture the feeling of the original.–Carol Durusau, Newton County Public Library, Covington, GACopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.