Who's Who in Shakespeare

by Peter Quennell and Hamish Johnson

Book Overview

Each of the more than 1,000 entries provides a summary of a character from a Shakespearean play and establishes his or her importance in the action of the play. An indispensable guide for anyone... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415421438
• ISBN13: 9780415421430
• Release Date: September 2006
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

An excellent all-round reference for the non-Shakespearean

I was never a huge Shakespeare fan, yeah I studied English Lit in HS and College, memorizing Soliloquies and regurgitating plot for exams but the man's works just don't do that much for me. I wish I had access to this book for those courses; maybe my attitude would've changed. For not only is it a listing of characters, but incorporated in those "bios" are summaries of their motivations; and hence plot discussions. It's also written clearly, with a fondness for its subject, but never a snide or condescending tone to the reader. As Hamlet said, "The Play's the thing" (had to have at least one quotation); this is a great play reference for the casual reader or puzzle solver. Highly recommended.

Informative, but not complete

I wet my pants in anticipation for this book. I never could understand Shakespeare, until now. This book revived my intrest and kept me busy for days. The only problem I found with this treasure of literary reference was it's lack of entries for Macmorris from "Henry V" and Jaques De Boys from "As You Like It". Other than that, I say that this book is for anyone who is beaten over the head by Shakespeare's works.