|
The nice people at Wordwindow are pleased to offer this new picture book titled Shakespeare for Children. Presented here is a collection of illustrated quotes that introduce William Shakespeare's wonderful poetry and prose to early and intermediate readers. The quotes are selected word-for-word from the edition of Shakespeare's collected plays known as the First Folio, published in the year 1623. The illustrations are loosely based on the plays. Our first goal in producing this picture book was to introduce thoughtful and emotional text to children. And who better to quote than the master poet and playwright, William Shakespeare! Our task then was to find quotes of his that were suitable for kids. Now, while it is true that much of Shakespeare's work is beautiful and thoughtful, a good deal more, in our opinion, could use a little brightening up. And so, to make sure the book was fine for kids, that's what we did. The quotes are presented exactly as Shakespeare wrote them, but anytime we thought the context was too complex or unpleasant for children, we interpreted it with an illustration that was more positive and well-intentioned. Through this method, our book aims to bring Shakespeare's word-for-word genius to your children, while at the same time presenting it in a gentler context. We hope that you will kindly approve of our child-friendly version of Shakespeare, and that the book gives readers an attractive and welcome way to enjoy one of the world’s greatest writers. Additionally, we have included the theatrical and speech-related concept of prosody, which is the process by which certain words and syllables are emphasized to create a rhythmic and more emotional pronunciation. By simply coloring the text that we feel should be spoken with emphasis, we hope to give children a sense of style, and a hint of what it is like to actually perform on stage. And so we invite you to please read with drama!, and have fun with the work of the great English poet and playwright, Master William Shakespeare. |
