The Young Reader's Shakespeare: Julius Caesar

by Adam McKeown, Janet Hamlin (Illustrator)

Young Reader’s Shakespeare returns, with another visually stunning and brilliantly rewritten version of one of the Bard’s classic plays. Julius Caesar has become such a part of our culture that many people even quote from it without realizing they are doing so: phrases such as “the dogs of war,” “it’s Greek to me,” and “the evil that men do” have become part of everyday English. With its powerful depiction of political struggle, assassination, and a country plunged into chaos, it tells a tale that’s as timely today as when Shakespeare first dramatized it.  
Seamlessly blending Shakespeare’s beautiful lines with modern language, Adam McKeown eases children into the world of Imperial Rome. His well-chosen words, aided by Janet Hamlin’s striking and boldly colored paintings, introduce them to such unforgettable characters as the well-meaning Brutus and Cassius with his “lean and hungry look.” Plus, Renaissance scholar McKeown provides thought-provoking background on Shakespeare and the play, a “Who’s Who” of the characters, and fascinating questions for young readers to ponder.

Genres: Shakespeare, Historical Fiction, Fiction

80 pages, Hardcover

First published March 4, 2008

Reviews

[John Betts · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very exciting, intense, and suspenseful. If you like battles and Rome’s history I think you would enjoy it. 📕

[Willow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely a retelling, rather than merely an abridgement. Probably the most striking difference between this and the original play was the greater role Artemidorus had in the retelling.

I enjoyed reading this alongside "Julius Caesar" unabridged. It did clarify some scenes and the rendering of dialogue into everyday English made understanding it easier, but then lacked the richness of the Shakespearean lines.

Note: it is a violent play, and the pictures of the murdered Caesar were somewhat grisly. Included are lots of images of bloodied hands and clothing. The soothsayer was known here as the fortune teller. An innocent man is killed for having the same name as a conspirator. Several men commit suicide on the battlefield.

[Fyo · Rating 1 out of 5]

As far as adaptions of Shakespeare go... this wasn't one. Basically nothing happens as it does in the play, characters and roles are switched randomly (like Portia seeing Casca's dream), rendering it unrecognizable as Shakespeare. Children's adaptions do not have to be off the mark at all, and this one is just a mess. Perhaps most strange to me is that the illustrations and character designs are based off of a little-known 2002 miniseries on TNT called Julius Caesar. Seriously, look it up. Illustrations are literally frames from the show.

[Kelli Bonin · Rating 4 out of 5]

For having never read the real version or seen the actual play (whoops, I will have to remedy that) I thought this was a beautiful adaptation. What a story! My son and I enjoyed reading it together after learning about ancient Rome.

[TinaYAN · Rating 3 out of 5]

This retelling ignited my spark of reading original work of Shakespeare.

[Maggie Panning · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the Young Reader's Shakespeare series, but it is hard to love this brutal story, my son (almost ten) certainly did not. The death and violence in this play was too much for him.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engaging retelling of Shakespeare in easy to follow chapters with nice illustrations that do not skimp on gore!

[Joshua Betts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book because it shows that you should not kill even if you are afraid. And it can lead to some thing worse. And I think that every one you can read it.😃😄😁😆🤣🥳🥰🤗

[Shelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect preview to prepare students for the Shakespearean Play of Julius Caesar. I appreciated the information in the forward portion describing the challenges the play my have to readers in determining each characters role; are they good or evil? And who, if any, was the hero? This insight will help readers look for any context clues to help them form their best opinion. Of course any teacher would be remiss if they didn't also throw in a mini-biography or two to further assist students.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was definitely our favorite of the Julius Caesar retellings for kids - quite detailed and kept the spirit of the original (including lots of the famous lines) but also well written of its own accord.