Middle Grade Books to Encourage Young Shakespeare Enthusiasts

The Stratford Zoo Midnight Review Presents: Romeo and Juliet and The Stratford Zoo Midnight Review Presents: Macbeth, two fun graphic novels by Ian Lendler and Zack Giallongo
These two graphic novels are the most kid-friendly retellings of Shakespeare’s plays out there. Recast with the animals from a zoo, who secretly put on the plays at nighttime, they are also funny as all get-out. The basic story line survives, but tweaked in most amusing ways. Romeo and Juliet is now the (platonic) friendship of a petting-zoo roster and a wild bear girl; Macbeth is now the story of a lion who eats everyone standing in his path to power (and regrets it). They are even more amusing for readers who already know the plays, whose appreciation of the alterations will be greater, but they are also entertaining introductions that Shakespeare novices too can chuckle over.

Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet, by Gareth Hinds
Gareth Hind’s graphic novel adaptations of Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet also are friendly introductions to the originals that stick more closely to the stories than those above. Hind’s Macbeth brings medieval Scotland to life most vividly. Kids who enjoy epic fantasy will be delighted by his illustrations, accompanied by text that has been slightly modernized and condensed, and detail-minded readers, as well as educators, will be delighted by his endnotes! Hinds’ version of Romeo and Juliet also is an essentially faithful presentation of the original, but with a twist—instead of being Italians, the Capulets are Indian, and the Montagues Black, which makes the point that stories of forbidden romance aren’t confined to a single culture. Hinds has also done versions of The Merchant of Venice and King Lear, but these, Merchant of Venice in particular, due to its anti-Semitism, are best offered to somewhat older readers.

Come Fall, by A.C.E. Bauer
Come Fall is a moving middle grade friendship story, given a magical underpinning by Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In the play, the queen and king of the fairies, Titania and Oberon, are quarreling over a human changeling—each of them wants the boy. Here the changeling boy becomes a modern child, living in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and the fairy quarrel spills over into our 21st century world. Salman Page is a foster kid living in a trailer near the town line, determined to fly under the radar of his new school. Finding himself with a trio of unlikely friends (one of whom is a crow!), makes this hard, especially when Oberon sends the trickster fairy Puck to sow mischief, and their classmates turn against them. Then Puck is ordered to turn his attentions to Salman’s foster father…and things get worse. The real world story could stand alone without any fairy magic. But Titania, Oberon, and Puck add a magical intrigue that makes it even stronger.

Shakespeare’s Secret, by Elise Broach
Starting sixth grade at a new school is never fun, and Hero has to bear the additional burden of her unusual Shakespearean name, that came courtesy of her father, a Shakespeare expert. But the elderly woman next door tells her about a diamond hidden somewhere in her new house and as Hero investigates, and gathers stories from her neighbor, she realizes that it has a connection to Shakespeare that could reveal a secret that will rock the scholarly world. Danny Cordova, the most popular boy in eighth grade, becomes her friend and joins her in her search, adding a bit of contemporary middle school drama to the historical quest. It’s a fun to see the mystery unfold, and the story makes a great introduction to Shakespeare the person, and the controversies that still swirl about whether he actually was the author of all the plays that bear his name.

King of Shadows, by Susan Cooper
Nat Field turned to theatre to keep his mind off the tragedy of his parents’ deaths, and he’s thrilled to have been chosen to play that part of Puck for an American troupe of all boy-players (for period accuracy) traveling to London to perform A Midsummer Night’s Dream in the replica of Shakespeare’s own Globe theater. But soon after arriving in London, Nat is transported back in time four hundred years, to play the role of Puck in Shakespeare’s own staging of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. After the initial culture shock of the time travel experience, Nat begins to wonder if he’d rather stay in the past. Shakespeare, kind and nurturing, becomes a father-figure to him, and helps heal the wound his father’s suicide left in his heart. Although the emotional arc of Nat’s journey is central to the story, it’s also an exciting picture of Elizabethan theater, full of details that bring the play and its players vividly to life.

Summerlost, by Ally Condie
This one is great for kids who want a more modern production of Shakespeare, set in a moving middle grade friendship story. After tragedy strikes, Cedar and her Mom move to a small town famous for its summer Shakespeare festival—Summerlost. She makes friends with a boy who sells concessions there, and dreams of the stage, and she too gets a job hawking programs. Shakespeare is a bit tangential to Cedar’s story of loss and healing, but theatre-loving kids will be delighted by all the details of the Summerlost festival, and the dedication of the actors, producers, and even program sellers who work together to make it a success.

Ballet Shoes and Theatre Shoes, by Noel Streatfeild
These delightful classics were my own first introduction to kids actually involved in dramatic productions of Shakespeare. Both books are about talented kids going on stage in London in the 1930s and 40s, and though they take part in many productions that aren’t Shakespearean, the performance of Midsummer Night’s Dream in Ballet Shoes and The Tempest in Theatre Shoes were some of my favorite bits. There’s lots of backstage detail concerning the mechanics of flying above the stage, the difficulties of speaking Shakespeare’s words exactly the way the director wants you to, and the magic of performing itself. Anyone who enjoys stories about siblings and careers in performing arts should seek out these books!