A Midsummer Night's Dream

October 2, 1996
Coville follows up his version of The Tempest (see p. 84) with a retelling of another of Shakespeare's most popular plays. The fundamental story of magic, mischief and the trials and tribulations of love is preserved through well-chosen use of the original language and Coville's heady prose ("The queen... saw the ass-headed monstrosity through magic-drenched eyes"). Major plot lines are clearly and concisely rendered, but it is the portrayal of the various levels of humor-from Bottom's buffoonery to Puck's gleeful magic-making-that really captures the essence of the play. Nolan's (Dinosaur Dream) sumptuous, painterly watercolors highlight the theatrical setting of the spellbound wood. Gnarled, mossy trees provide the backdrop for a cast of unusually youthful lovers, gossamer-winged fairies (which nod at Rackham's famous interpretations) and a truly puckish Puck. A first-rate entree to the Bard. Ages 7-up.

A narrator helps compress the action of Shakespeare's charming comedy into less than an hour, telling us what's occurring and then letting the characters give us their better-known scenes. The program, "from the archives of CBC Radio," has a copyright of 2003, but judging by the acting (Hermia reminds one more of Virginia Mayo than Judi Dench) and music (composed for this program, and quite enjoyable), it was recorded in the early '50s at the latest. Still, the acting runs from adequate to excellent, and the narration is polished; the whole will make a pleasant, if abbreviated, version of the play for those who find its age quaint rather than off-putting. W.M. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine


kathead - So this book was really hard to understand at first. Not only was it a play, but is it also a story. There are four main characters, Lysander who is in love with Hermia. Hermia who is in love with Lysander. Demetrius, who is in love with Hermia as well. And then poor Helena, who is in love with Demetrius. As the young lovers, Hermia and Lysander flee from their homes to go and marry somewhere else, so that Hermia's father cannot object, Helena finds out, but promises not to tell anyone. Then, after the two lovers have left, Helena goes to Demetrius and tells him about their plan. She hoped that he would be upset and marry her instead, but it doesn't work out that way. Instead he chases after the couple into the forest. The rest? You'll have to find that out for yourself.