Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare Classics Graphic Novels) - Softcover

Hinds, Gareth

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0763668079 ISBN 13: 9780763668075

Publisher: Candlewick Press,U.S., 2013

Synopsis

Gareth Hinds’s stylish graphic adaptation of Shakespeare's romantic tragedy offers modern touches –including a diverse cast underscoring the story’s universality.

She's a Capulet. He's a Montague. But when Romeo and Juliet first meet, they don't know they're from rival families – and when they find out, they don't care. Their love is honest and raw and all-consuming. But it's also dangerous. How much will they have to sacrifice before they can be together? In a masterful adaptation faithful to Shakespeare’s original text, Gareth Hinds transports readers to the sun-washed streets and market squares of Shakespeare’s Verona, vividly bringing the classic play to life on the printed page.

About this title

Review

This is undoubtedly the greatest love story ever written, spawning a host of imitators on stage and screen, including Leonard Bernstein's smash musical West Side Story, Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet filmed in 1968, and Baz Luhrmann's postmodern film version Romeo + Juliet. The tragic feud between "Two households, both alike in dignity/In fair Verona", the Montagues and Capulets, which ultimately kills the two young "star-crossed lovers" and their "death-marked love" creates issues which have fascinated subsequent generations. The play deals with issues of intergenerational and familial conflict, as well as the power of language and the compelling relationship between sex and death, all of which makes it an incredibly modern play. It is also an early example of Shakespeare fusing poetry with dramatic action, as he moves from Romeo's lyrical account of Juliet--"she doth teach the torches to burn bright!" to the bustle and action of a 16th-century household (the play contains more scenes of ordinary working people than any of Shakespeare's other works). It also represents an experimental attempt to fuse comedy with tragedy. Up to the third act, the play proceeds along the lines of a classic romantic comedy. The turning point comes with the death of one of Shakespeare's finest early dramatic creations--Romeo's sexually ambivalent friend Mercutio, whose "plague o' both your houses" begins the play's descent into tragedy, "For never was a story of more woe/Than this of Juliet and her Romeo". --Jerry Brotton

Review

Shakespeare's tragic lovers receive star treatment in this spellbinding graphic-novel production. ... As thrilling and riveting as any staging.
--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Cleaving to Shakespeare's words and his dramatic arc, Hinds creates another splendid graphic novel, tracing each scene in taut, coherent, and expertly deployed dialogue. Hinds's characters, in period array modified by a few more contemporary touches, are poignantly specific yet as universal as this tragic tale of young love demands. ... . Expertly pacing the drama with varied frames, often with sharp, action-propelling angles, Hinds explicates and amplifies Shakespeare's story on every page, including wordless fight scenes that highlight pivotal details. ... From swirling action to subtly delineated emotion, he delivers the play's essence and beauty, its glorious language, furious conflict, yearning love, and wrenching tragedy. This is not only a wonderfully accessible introduction to a full text or (better yet) theatrical production; it's a visual delight for anyone.
--The Horn Book (starred review)

This graphic retelling of Shakespeare's play is delightfully modernized.
--Library Media Connection (highly recommended)

The Shakespearean language is abridged but not adapted into contemporary English; footnotes explain words that could be confusing to young audiences. The use of lines and colorful watercolors is striking, especially when illustrating action such as dancing and sword fights.
--School Library Journal

[A] striking rendition of the play. ... With its sumptuous colors and fealty to the original text, this sophisticated "comic" would suit any strong reader over the age of 12.
--The Wall Street Journal

The text is skillfully edited, and the panels easy to follow, especially as the warring families' costumes are color-coded. The effect is that of a good stage production: Shakespeare's language speaks clearly to modern ears.
--Newsday

About this edition

• Publisher: Candlewick Press,U.S.
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0763668079
• ISBN 13: 9780763668075
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 144
• Illustrator: Hinds Gareth