April 22, 2015

Shakespeare in youngCanLit

Everyone may be celebrating Earth Day but April is a significant month historically when we consider William Shakespeare, the Bard.  He was baptized April 26, 1564 and his death was recorded as April 23, 1616.  Having recently finished reading Kevin Sylvester's Neil Flambé and the Bard's Banquet (Simon & Schuster, 2015), I realized how the plots and themes of William Shakespeare's plays are so universal and expressed in such eloquent poetry and prose that it's not surprising that they're often used as the basis for more contemporary novels.  If you're a lover of Shakespeare, consider reading the following for a different flavour of Shakespeare's wonder, whether to learn more about the man and his works or to just enjoy how Canadian authors have found creative means to embed his work.


Picture Books

Goodnight, Sweet Pig
by Linda Bailey
Illustrated by Josée Masse
Kids Can Press
32 pp.
Ages 2-5
2007
Jack and Mary in the Land of Thieves
by Andy Jones
Illustrated by Darka Erdelji
Running the Goat Books & Broadsides
52 pp.
Ages 4+
2012






Fiction

Broken Bones (A Peggy Henderson Adventure)
by Gina McMurchy-Barber
Dundurn
196 pp.
Ages 9-12
2011


Buried Truths
by Alice Walsh
Tuckamore Books/Creative Book Publishing
173 pp.
Ages 11-14
2013


The Grave Robber's Apprentice
by Allan Stratton
HarperCollins Canada
256 pp.
Ages 10-14
2012


Neil Flambé and the Bard's Banquet
by Kevin Sylvester
Simon & Schuster
320 pp.
Ages 8-12
2015


Pegeen and the Pilgrim
by Lyn Cook
Illustrated by Pat and Bill Wheeler
Tundra Books
278 pp.
Ages 9-13
2002


The Shakespeare Stealer
by Gary Blackwood
Puffin Books / Penguin Books Canada
216 pp.
Ages 10-14
1998


Shakespeare's Scribe
by Gary Blackwood
Puffin Books
272 pp.
Ages 10-14
2000


Shakespeare's Spy
by Gary Blackwood
Puffin Books
288 pp.
Ages 10-14
2003


Stitches
by Glen Huser
Groundwood Books
200 pp.
Ages 11-14
2003







Young Adult

Closer to Hamlet
by David Boyd
Wonderdog Press
120 pp.
Ages 13-17
2010


Come Like Shadows
by Welwyn Wilton Katz
Puffin
224 pp.
Ages 13-17
1995



A Breath of Frost
by Alyxandra Harvey
Bloomsbury
496 pp.
Ages 12-18
2014


Whisper the Dead 
by Alyxandra Harvey
Bloomsbury
408 pp.
Ages 12-18
2015


Minerva's Voyage
by Lynne Kositsky
Dundurn Press
240 pp.
Ages 11-14
2009


Only in the Movies
by William Bell
Doubleday Canada
240 pp.
Ages 13-15
2010


A Question of Will
by Lynne Kositsky
Roussan
141 pp.
Ages 12-14
2000


Rough Magic
by Carol Cude Mullin
Second Story Press
264 pp.
Ages 14-17
2009



The Taming
by Eric Walters and Teresa Toten
Doubleday Canada
229 pp.
Ages 13-17
2012


Wondrous Strange
by Lesley Livingston
HarperCollins
327 pp.
Ages 12+
2008


Dark Light
by Lesley Livingston
HarperCollins
312 pp.
Ages 12+
2010


Tempestuous
by Lesley Livingston
HarperCollins
361 pp.
Ages 12+
2011






Non-Fiction

All the World's a Stage: A Pop-up Biography of William Shakespeare
by Michael Bender
Raincoast Books
20 pp.
Ages 9+
1999


A Child's Portrait of Shakespeare
by Lois Burdett
Firefly Books
64 pp.
Ages 7-12
1995


Hamlet for Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett
Firefly Books
64 pp.
Ages 7-12
2000


Macbeth for Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett
Firefly Books
64 pp.
Ages 7-12
1996


A Midsummer Night's Dream for Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett
Firefly Books
64 pp.
Ages 7-12
1997


Much Ado About Nothing for Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett
Firefly Books
64 pp.
Ages 7-12
2002


Romeo and Juliet for Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett
Firefly Books
64 pp.
Ages 7-12
1998


The Tempest for Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett and Christine Coburn
Firefly Books
40 pp.
Ages 7-12
1999


Twelfth Night For Kids (Shakespeare Can Be Fun)
by Lois Burdett and Christine Coburn
Firefly Books
40 pp.
Ages 7-12
1994



2 comments:

  1. Great list. I always smile when I see a Lyn Cook novel mentioned. Good memories.

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    Replies
    1. Glad you enjoyed the list. It's interesting how even recalling a book, such as The Pegeen and the Pilgrim for yourself, can evoke good memories. I recently had that same experience with Cue for Treason. Go figure.

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