Kill Shakespeare Volume 1

A narrative device that could easily have crashed and burned instead proves engaging and, at times, enlightening in this clever extrapolation of the Bard’s narratives and characters. Foulest of the foul, tyrant Richard III and the seductive Lady Macbeth trick an anguished Hamlet into a quest for the quill of a mysterious wizard known as William Shakespeare. Though in the care of the king’s man Iago, Hamlet soon finds himself in the company of the deceptively buffoonish Falstaff, who brings him before Othello and Juliet, leaders of a rebellion against the king. Though its heavier on action than Shakespeare ever was, authentic interpretations of the cast (particularly master manipulator Iago and the rascal Falstaff) and several scenes faithful to the playwright’s themes make for a much more enjoyable read than many Shakespeare-phobic students are likely to expect. The art opens up the world and offers some impressively imagined backgrounds at the same time that it keeps the characters grounded and real and the entire production appropriately theatrical. A grim epilogue promises more in the offing. Grades 9-12. --Jesse Karp