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It would be interesting to know how much those who claim Shakespeare didn't write his own plays are motivated by jealousy. Many writers are jealous of ol' Billy—he's the one author universally recognized as the best ever. Most, however, rejoice that such literary magic was distilled for subsequent generations by an alchemist of less-than-noble origins and obscure life.

The idea that Shakespeare didn't write Shakespeare was around before the movie Anonymous. Critics point out that Willy Shakes knew a lot about the world for one who'd never left England (did he, though? he didn't know his geography very well), that he was well-versed in the ways of the English Court for a common man, or that an uneducated bumpkin from Stratford-upon-Avon couldn't produce a body of work that transcends the volumes of "superior" writers.

Shakespeare ended his days as a businessman in his hometown, away from the chaos, mud and spectacle of London. Is that how a great writer would end his days? What about the mystery of his handwriting? was he illiterate? if he could read and write, wouldn't there be more than a few signatures and some misspelled words? At first glance, the evidence seems compelling to attribute "Shakespeare's" work elsewhere, to the Earl of Oxford, Sir Francis Bacon, or some cadre of playwrights.

The reasons for finding another author for Shakespeare are more related to worldview than personal motives. Postmodernists like to obscure authorship in an effort to show that standards and absolutes are human constructs; modernists (and postmodernists) like to impose contemporary values on the past. The latter is a big motivating factor in the Shakespeare debate: Elizabethans had no concept of ownership when it came to texts, but most higher critics suppose they did.

There's no substantial reason to believe William Shakespeare was not the source of the plays attributed to him. What is absolutely certain is that no one before or since has so thoroughly captured the scope of the human predicament, or done so half as well as the Bard of Avon. His poetry lies between biblical oracle and Miltonian pedantry; his prose the most poetic lines penned by a seller of wheat (or a nobleman, for that matter).

Good literary education often begins with Shakespeare. A lot of it ends there, too. So much modern fiction is unreadable because writers don't look far enough back for inspiration; a few generations ago, writers read Homer, Milton, Shakespeare and Dickens. A noble company, ironically helmed by a commoner with less education than those who call themselves scholars in his name. We carry most of his plays, and a variety of resources to help you understand them. Remember that Shakespeare's plots are borrowed and recycled; it's the genius of expression that sets his work apart.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
 
There are many, many editions of Shakespeare's plays, and if they're beautiful and in good shape, we'll take almost any version that passes our desk, but there are only so many useful versions that are fairly readily available for study purposes. We wanted to give you a quick rundown on those we often offer.
 
  • Folger Library - Our favorite series to carry and the only one for which we offer ALL the plays, these books offer Shakespeare's text on one page, with definitions for difficult words on the facing page. Some people complain that the formatting is cramped, but that is certainly less the case in the trade paper versions, the only ones now in print.
  • Oxford School Library - These are very nice, spacious, good notes and occasionally illustrated with photographs from Shakespeare performances. Main issue with these is they are often not readily available.
  • Dover Thrift Editions - A decent cheaper option. The formatting is definitely more crampted than others and the notes are harder to read at the bottom of each page.
  • No Fear Shakespeare - This version offers the original text on one page and a modernized text on the facing page. Main complaint is that sexual passages are often more explicit than necessary in the retelling, so it's one we'd recommend avoiding for kids.
  • Barron's Shakespeare Made Easy - This version also offers the original text on one page and a modernized text on the facing page. Haven't heard the same complaint about explicit text in these.
  • Pelican Shakespeare - We haven't ordered these in a while, but these are well-crafted editions. Each book includes an essay on the theatrical world of Shakespeare’s time, an introduction to the individual play, and a detailed note on the text used. Similar in price to the Folger, these feature artsy covers and take up less shelf space. 
  • Illustrated Shakespeare
  • Shakespeare Can Be Fun
 
 
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Complete works of Shakespeare online
Which Shakespeare Play Should I See?
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54 Items found Print
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All's Well That Ends Well
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Antony and Cleopatra
Oxford School Shakespeare
by William Shakespeare
from Oxford University
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Antony and Cleopatra
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Simon and Schuster
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Bard of Avon
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.99
Brightest Heaven of Invention
by Peter Leithart
from Canon Press
for 10th-Adult
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
$21.00
Comedy Of Errors
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Coriolanus
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Cymbeline
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Hamlet
by William Shakespeare
from Oxford University
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Hamlet
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th grade-adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry IV, Part 1
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry IV, Part 2
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry V
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry VI Part 1
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry VI Part 2
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry VI Part 3
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Henry VIII
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare
by Ken Ludwig
1st Paperback Edition from Broadway Books
for Adult
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
$17.00 $10.00 (2 in stock)
Julius Caesar
Oxford School Shakespeare
by William Shakespeare & Roma Gill, editor
from Oxford University
Historical Tragedy for 7th-10th grade
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
King John
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
King Lear
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
King Richard III
Cambridge School Shakespeare Series
by William Shakespeare
from Cambridge University
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$13.00
Love's Labor's Lost
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Macbeth
Oxford School Shakespeare
by William Shakespeare & Roma Gill, editor
from Oxford University
Historical Tragedy for 7th-10th grade
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Measure for Measure
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Merchant of Venice
by William Shakespeare
from Dover Publications
for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$3.00 $1.00 (9 in stock)
Midsummer Night's Dream
Oxford School Shakespeare
by William Shakespeare & Roma Gill, editor
from Oxford University
Comedy for 7th-10th grade
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Midsummer Night's Dream
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Othello
by William Shakespeare
from Oxford University
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Othello
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Pericles
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Richard II
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Richard III
Cambridge School Shakespeare Series
by William Shakespeare
from Dover Publications
Historical Drama for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$4.00
Richard III
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
Updated from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Romeo and Juliet
by William Shakespeare
from Oxford University
Tragedy for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Shakespeare Stealer
Shakespeare Stealer #1
by Gary Blackwood
from Puffin Books
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Shakespeare's Hamlet
by Leland Ryken
from Crossway Books
for 9th-Adult
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
$4.79
Shakespeare's Macbeth
by Leland Ryken
1st edition from Crossway Books
for 9th-12th grade
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
$4.79
Shakespeare's Scribe
Shakespeare Stealer #2
by Gary Blackwood
from Puffin Books
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Shakespeare's Sonnets
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Shakespeare: The World As Stage
by Bill Bryson
for 10th-Adult
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
$15.99
Tales from Shakespeare
by Charles Lamb, Mary Lamb
from Wordsworth Classics
Shakespeare Stories for 3rd-8th grade
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
$5.99
Tempest
by William Shakespeare
from Dover Publications
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$3.00
Tempest
by William Shakespeare
from Barron's
for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Tempest
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Timon of Athens
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Titus Andronicus
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 11th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Troilus and Cressida
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 11th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Twelfth Night
by William Shakespeare
from Barron's
Comedy for 8th-12th grade
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$6.99 $4.50 (3 in stock)
Twelfth Night
Oxford School Shakespeare
by William Shakespeare, edited by Roma Gill
from Oxford University
Comedy for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.95
Two Gentlemen of Verona
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
Two Noble Kinsmen
Folger Shakespeare Library
by William Shakespeare
from Washington Square Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$9.99
William Shakespeare and the Globe
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$8.99
Winter's Tale
by William Shakespeare
Unabridged from Dover Publications
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$4.00
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