Enter Three Witches

Battles, deceit, and loyalty abound in Cooney's masterful reworking of Shakespeare's MACBETH. Her spellbinding story clarifies the plot of the classic play with its use of modern prose and its addition of engaging new characters whose stories help fill in the gaps left in the original. The resulting story, written for young adults, will enthrall adult listeners as well. Narrator Charlotte Parry's native British accent is fitting, but she excels most when she invokes the Scots dialect, whether speaking as a male, a female, or the "wyrd sisters." The strength of the story, combined with Parry's talent, will keep listeners engaged for the entire production and shivering at the voices of the witches long after the last word. B.H. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

Starred review from April 2, 2007
Cooney (The Face on the Milk Carton
; Code Orange
) fashions a compulsively readable, behind-the-scenes peek into the rise and fall of Lord and Lady Macbeth, told from the points of view of several of the play's minor characters plus a handful of invented ones. As the central tale proceeds inexorably from triumph to betrayal to tragedy, several subplots unfold. Sweet-natured Lady Mary (daughter of the Thane of Cawdor) was sent to learn the domestic arts from elegant but icy Lady Macbeth. Her circumstances take a turn for the worse when her father is declared a traitor to the king, her fiancé dies in battle, and she is offered in marriage to Seyton, Macbeth's henchman, a ruthless man who will do whatever it takes to acquire a fortune. Banquo's son fights in his first battle and then must determine where his loyalties lie when Macbeth's thugs kill his father. Sturdy, independent-minded Swin runs the kitchen with an iron fist but dispenses unexpected kindness on the sly. Meanwhile, embittered Ildred comes to terms with a terrible betrayal and eventually rediscovers a rewarding way to live. These briskly narrated plot lines and more unfold in bite-size scenes, each prefaced by a related quote from the Bard's play. Thus, each of Shakespeare's lines gets enough space so that it can be savored by readers who might otherwise be intimidated by the dense, unfamiliar language. This more human-scale vision offers an easy way in for readers new to the play, and will also reward those familiar with the grand tragedy. Ages 12-up.