This month, we have a guest review from Arhaan Babar Ray. Some of you may know him from the book club.
Masala Shakespeare, written by Jonathan Gill Harris, and published by Aleph, brings together the ingredients of music, cinema, masti (fun) and pluralism, to concoct an interesting memoir-like piece, delving into how Jonathan Gill Harris himself became a lover of Indian Cinema. The book explores the connection between Shakespeare and Modern Indian Cinema, namely how both once served as a common entertainment for all members of society, bringing together a nation/community.
He does this through 5 Acts (just like a Shakespearean play!), with their scenes, each adding a layer of analysis. Harris also makes known his disdain for the multiplex-ization and the commercialization of Indian Cinema today, and his longing for the golden age of Indian Cinema. Overall, this book made me appreciate the masala of films, as I have always looked at films through the lens of a boring critic. The novel has made me understand the value of the cringe of certain songs and the feel of a screaming, dancing theatre. Read this book.
(PS, Jonathan Gill Harris is an extremely cool guy. Not only because he ‘hearted’ the reel I made on the book, but also because he does cool work!)
While Mary Lamb has quite a negative reputation, and could be a character from one of Shakespeare’s tragedies herself, the book is really good! It has remained a classic and one of the most common versions of Shakespeare's plays being retold even today. I think what makes this book so popular is how engaging and diverse the stories are (there are some really random ones!). I especially enjoyed the way the book was written, because while it was an abridged version of Shakespeare, the Shakespearan language and references were not entirely abandoned. One finds them peppered throughout the stories. This book is a great stepping stone for pre-teens before they start reading the original plays. My only disappointment with the book is that it doesn’t feature his historical plays, like Julius Caesar, and Antony and Cleopatra, which are some of his most interesting works.
This is a series of stories, retelling Shakespeare's plays. It has illustrations making it easier to picture the setting and atmosphere. It works for younger readers, each story is condensed into 20-30 pages. This series includes classics like Hamlet, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet. While reading retold stories and abridged versions makes them accessible, I feel the whole point of reading Shakespeare is the beautiful language. One issue I had with these stories is that the writing is a little drab, unengaging and it sometimes feels like they were written by a 12 year old instead of for a 12 year old. I think it could have been better executed.
This series is a collection of books, each one retelling a story from one of Shakespeare’s plays. The books have a lot of illustrations and large text, making them easy for early readers to go through on their own. I really enjoyed reading these books because they break down the complex nature of these plays in a way that little kids can understand. These books are a great way to introduce children to Shakespeare at a young age. I have to say I preferred reading these versions to Michael Morpurgo’s book.
This book is great to read to 4-5 year olds. Since Shakespeare has a lot of interesting stories, this book makes the complex stories accessible to children. This book was read to me when I was little and I remember enjoying it. Each story has an introduction where the historical background is given, to make the plays easier to understand. Each character is also introduced at the beginning of the story along with an illustration. I would recommend this book for children who enjoy complex stories.