Genres
Publication
Quirk Books (2013), Edition: 01, 176 pages
Description
A retelling of Star wars in the style of Shakespeare, in which a wise Jedi knight, an evil Sith lord, a beautiful captive princess, and a young hero coming of age reflect the valor and villainy of the Bard's greatest plays.
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User reviews
LibraryThing member shabacus
The math on this one is pretty simple. Do you like Star Wars? Do you like Shakespeare? Then you'll probably like this. Otherwise, it's not for you.
As a fan of both of those things, I liked it, and I can give some more detail on what I liked about it, and what fell a little short for me.
First of
The Star Wars knowledge the author displays is where the book really shines. Doescher takes pretty much every famous line from the original and casts it into a perfectly quotable Shakespearean form. I found myself looking forward to how favorite lines would be rendered. As this takes a fairly high level of Star Wars fandom, my experience may not be shared universally.
The monologues and asides were one of my favorite parts, especially R2-D2's parts. They tie in fan theories about what's going on in the film in a delightful way.
Now, I just have to wait to see if it's performed.
As a fan of both of those things, I liked it, and I can give some more detail on what I liked about it, and what fell a little short for me.
First of
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all, it is clear that the author knew his Shakespeare. The verse is written in relentless iambic pentameter, with almost none of the variation that Shakespeare himself employed. At a deeper structural level, he got it right--lines rhyme right where they should, sonnets appear in their proper place. The text is liberally sprinkled through with allusions (and some downright rip-offs) of famous lines from Shakespeare. A few of these fit perfectly, others feel added in for the benefit of casual Shakespeare fans.The Star Wars knowledge the author displays is where the book really shines. Doescher takes pretty much every famous line from the original and casts it into a perfectly quotable Shakespearean form. I found myself looking forward to how favorite lines would be rendered. As this takes a fairly high level of Star Wars fandom, my experience may not be shared universally.
The monologues and asides were one of my favorite parts, especially R2-D2's parts. They tie in fan theories about what's going on in the film in a delightful way.
Now, I just have to wait to see if it's performed.
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LibraryThing member anotherjoy
This was a fun, rather hilarious read. I had neither watched the first original Star Wars (Star Wars IV: A New Hope, the movie covered by this book) nor read any original Shakespeare in a long time, so I felt that I had more of a clean slate going into this book. It was definitely entertaining. The
The only real fly in the ointment for me were the constant asides by the different characters. I know Shakespeare plays were known for their character monologues, but here almost every time a character speaks, he speaks to the audience before or after he speaks to the other characters. It takes away some of the magic of the story to have each character explain to the audience their inner motivation for everything they are saying or doing to another character. Also, the author uses these side comments to insert tidbits of knowledge or awareness of later revelations that would not be known to the character or to the audience during the movie that this book is actually supposed to be covering.
These abundant side comments referencing things that were not necessarily addressed in the associated movie distracted somewhat from my enjoyment of the book. I was hoping to “see” the original Star Wars film, as if for the first time, with Shakespearean eyes. This book does capture that adventuresome spirit, just with a little more story than I had anticipated.
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“Chorus” narrating for the parts of the movie in which action out-produces dialogue was necessary, if not great, and R2D2’s “voice” seemed to be more projection and interpretation by the author than the actual portrayal in the movie, although I don’t know how that could have been avoided. However, I really liked the pivotal moments of the Star Wars story being told and spoke in the Shakespearean style; the dialogue had an extra flair of amusement that suited the action/adventure.The only real fly in the ointment for me were the constant asides by the different characters. I know Shakespeare plays were known for their character monologues, but here almost every time a character speaks, he speaks to the audience before or after he speaks to the other characters. It takes away some of the magic of the story to have each character explain to the audience their inner motivation for everything they are saying or doing to another character. Also, the author uses these side comments to insert tidbits of knowledge or awareness of later revelations that would not be known to the character or to the audience during the movie that this book is actually supposed to be covering.
These abundant side comments referencing things that were not necessarily addressed in the associated movie distracted somewhat from my enjoyment of the book. I was hoping to “see” the original Star Wars film, as if for the first time, with Shakespearean eyes. This book does capture that adventuresome spirit, just with a little more story than I had anticipated.
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LibraryThing member ALoyacano
I was by chance that I picked this up after seeing a production of Return to the Forbidden Planet a few days prior. Both use Shakespeare style to parody science fiction (the play parodies Star Trek).
William Shakespeare's Star Wars is a very entertaining read. It not only follows the plot of the
I am not sure sure if I would have done much more than giggle at the title of this work in a books store, but I am sincerely glad I read it. I was able to show the true dramatic plot that all great stories have. This really cries out to be a wonderful stage production.
William Shakespeare's Star Wars is a very entertaining read. It not only follows the plot of the
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original movie, but it adds additional information to the story line through traditional dramatic forms like asides. Characters like R2D2 are given their robotic exterior, but they are also given moments with the audience that reveal their true purpose or thought processes. I found Obi Wan's self reflection about what to tell Luke about his father to be the most eyeopening. I am not sure sure if I would have done much more than giggle at the title of this work in a books store, but I am sincerely glad I read it. I was able to show the true dramatic plot that all great stories have. This really cries out to be a wonderful stage production.
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LibraryThing member Sarij
I’m a part of the Star Wars generation. The original movie came out the summer I turned 12. Back in 1977 no one had ever seen a movie quiet like this. Between the special effects (who can forget the Death Star explosion) and makeup, it was Hollywood magic at its finest. Even my mother, a jaded
Even today, it holds a special place in my heart. Maybe because it came out in the twilight of my innocence. That last summer between adolescence and teen angst. Or maybe because I just remember how much fun my friends and I had watching it, acting it out (yes, we were at that age where that sort of behavior was acceptable) and arguing over key moments in the movie; we were also of the age that philosophical thought started to creep into our discussions.
Star Wars remains one of my favorite movies; a love I have passed onto my son. But as the years have gone I have moved on, finding new loves and new subjects of philosophical debate. Shakespeare is now the topic of many long discussions, though I do recall one in which Hamlet and Luke were subjected to comparison. Both at times hesitated to do what was needed and both have some serious daddy issues!
Why am I bringing this up? Well, a few weeks ago I was offered the chance to review Ian Doescher’s book “William Shakespeare’s Star Wars”. The nerd in me jumped at the chance to read a mash-up of my favorite movie and favorite playwright. Of course I wondered if it would be any good and if the Bard scholar in me would find fault on every page? So how did it do?
The book exceeded my expectations; although to be fair, my expectations were rather low, I hoped at least be entertained for a few hours. What I got was a few hours of pure delight. From the opening lines:
C-3PO- Now is the summer of our happiness
Made winter by this sudden, fierce attack!
Our ship is under siege, I know not how.
O hast thou heard? The main reactor fails!
We shall most surely be destroy’d by this.
I’ll warrant madness lies herein!
to the last, I giggled like the 12 year old I once was. The adult Shakespeare lover in my admired Doescher’s ability to stick to some of Lucas’ original words, while writing them in the Bard’s style. But the biggest surprise and delight came from Doescher’s novel idea to place Shakespeare-like asides and soliloquies in key moments. These monologs gives true Star Wars fans new ways of thinking about the characters and their motivations. Take Luke’s inner struggle after finding his aunt and uncle’s chard remains:
Adventure have I ask’d for in this life,
and now have I too much of my desire.
My soul within me weeps: my mind, it runs
unto a thousand varied paths.
My uncle Own and my aunt Beru,
have they been cruelly kill’d for what I want?
The soliloquy goes on, we get the idea that Luke feels guilt and pressure over this tragedy. He vows to fight so that his family will be “honor’d in their grave”.
From R2D2 to Vader, these innermost thoughts create depth to the story, and dare I say it? Make it a little better. Yep, I am telling you that Doescher’s retelling breaths new life into the Lucas’ world.
I wish this book had come out when the other mash-up were popular. I got my son to read and admire Jane Austin with “Pride Prejudice and Zombies” If he had read Doescher’s book in high school he may have had an easier time with Shakespeare. William Shakespeare’s Star Wars is a wonderful introduction into Shakespearian verse. Getting students used to “Shakespeare “speak” can be a challenge. Doescher’s book may ease some of their fear of Shakespeare.
Are there mistakes? Yes, the biggest is that Doescher doesn’t modify speaking styles; the higher class should be speaking in verse, and the lower in prose, or at the least Leia, Vader and the generals should have spoken in “inversions”, a speech style Shakespeare used to show the difference in classes. Am I complaining? No, not really, I had too much fun reading this book and I hope you will to.
Anon. May the verse be with you!
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moviegoer, gasped when Obi-Wan and Luke entered the cantina. Everyone I knew wanted to see Star Wars, and for many of us kids, once was not enough. By the time the summer ended I’d watched it 12 times. Even today, it holds a special place in my heart. Maybe because it came out in the twilight of my innocence. That last summer between adolescence and teen angst. Or maybe because I just remember how much fun my friends and I had watching it, acting it out (yes, we were at that age where that sort of behavior was acceptable) and arguing over key moments in the movie; we were also of the age that philosophical thought started to creep into our discussions.
Star Wars remains one of my favorite movies; a love I have passed onto my son. But as the years have gone I have moved on, finding new loves and new subjects of philosophical debate. Shakespeare is now the topic of many long discussions, though I do recall one in which Hamlet and Luke were subjected to comparison. Both at times hesitated to do what was needed and both have some serious daddy issues!
Why am I bringing this up? Well, a few weeks ago I was offered the chance to review Ian Doescher’s book “William Shakespeare’s Star Wars”. The nerd in me jumped at the chance to read a mash-up of my favorite movie and favorite playwright. Of course I wondered if it would be any good and if the Bard scholar in me would find fault on every page? So how did it do?
The book exceeded my expectations; although to be fair, my expectations were rather low, I hoped at least be entertained for a few hours. What I got was a few hours of pure delight. From the opening lines:
C-3PO- Now is the summer of our happiness
Made winter by this sudden, fierce attack!
Our ship is under siege, I know not how.
O hast thou heard? The main reactor fails!
We shall most surely be destroy’d by this.
I’ll warrant madness lies herein!
to the last, I giggled like the 12 year old I once was. The adult Shakespeare lover in my admired Doescher’s ability to stick to some of Lucas’ original words, while writing them in the Bard’s style. But the biggest surprise and delight came from Doescher’s novel idea to place Shakespeare-like asides and soliloquies in key moments. These monologs gives true Star Wars fans new ways of thinking about the characters and their motivations. Take Luke’s inner struggle after finding his aunt and uncle’s chard remains:
Adventure have I ask’d for in this life,
and now have I too much of my desire.
My soul within me weeps: my mind, it runs
unto a thousand varied paths.
My uncle Own and my aunt Beru,
have they been cruelly kill’d for what I want?
The soliloquy goes on, we get the idea that Luke feels guilt and pressure over this tragedy. He vows to fight so that his family will be “honor’d in their grave”.
From R2D2 to Vader, these innermost thoughts create depth to the story, and dare I say it? Make it a little better. Yep, I am telling you that Doescher’s retelling breaths new life into the Lucas’ world.
I wish this book had come out when the other mash-up were popular. I got my son to read and admire Jane Austin with “Pride Prejudice and Zombies” If he had read Doescher’s book in high school he may have had an easier time with Shakespeare. William Shakespeare’s Star Wars is a wonderful introduction into Shakespearian verse. Getting students used to “Shakespeare “speak” can be a challenge. Doescher’s book may ease some of their fear of Shakespeare.
Are there mistakes? Yes, the biggest is that Doescher doesn’t modify speaking styles; the higher class should be speaking in verse, and the lower in prose, or at the least Leia, Vader and the generals should have spoken in “inversions”, a speech style Shakespeare used to show the difference in classes. Am I complaining? No, not really, I had too much fun reading this book and I hope you will to.
Anon. May the verse be with you!
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LibraryThing member EowynA
When geekdoms collide here, the result is delightful. The language and cadence is Shakespearean, the plot is pure Lucas. If you have a favorite Shakespearean phrase, you may find it echoed here. Among my favorites are "What light through yonder flashing sensor breaks?" and the speech that ends with
Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here.
For never shall Rebellion see a time
More glori'us than our strong attack today!
The story is told with a chorus narrating the action as needed. The actors have asides to the audience. It is very, very much a play, not a movie. If you read this while anyone you know is in the room, you are likely to find yourself quoting passages. I finished reading this on a plane, and my traveling companion and I starting planning how we could do a reading of this among our group of friends. This book begs to be read aloud.
If you enjoy both Shakespeare and Star Wars, you will be delighted by this book.
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And citizens now in Bespin now abed Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here.
For never shall Rebellion see a time
More glori'us than our strong attack today!
The story is told with a chorus narrating the action as needed. The actors have asides to the audience. It is very, very much a play, not a movie. If you read this while anyone you know is in the room, you are likely to find yourself quoting passages. I finished reading this on a plane, and my traveling companion and I starting planning how we could do a reading of this among our group of friends. This book begs to be read aloud.
If you enjoy both Shakespeare and Star Wars, you will be delighted by this book.
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LibraryThing member Rebecca_Hail
This book seamlessly blended classic Shakespeare with the brilliant work that is known as Star Wars. It's fun, quirky, and easy to read. It also sheds more light on dear R2-D2 and what he was thinking throughout the entire ordeal. Loved it. Quote it constantly, much to the dismay of my friends who
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don't understand the references. Show Less
LibraryThing member readafew
I love Star Wars and have enjoyed many of Shakespeare's plays. While it would be easy to really mess up the attempt, a truly well done ‘translation’ could be epic. We now have Star Wars in 5 acts. I have to say overall it was OK. I did enjoy reading the book and I it only took a couple hours,
There were passages that I felt were absolutely brilliant and some that needed a bit more work. In my opinion, part of what hobbled the work is the author tried too hard in some scenes to keep as much of the original dialog as possible. Sometimes it worked sometimes it was a total flop. One of my favorite passages in the whole book was on p.102 starting line # 46. It was made entirely from whole cloth, a rather humorous exchange between the 2 stormtroopers guarding the Millennium Falcon in the Death Star hangar bay.
Another good line is “ -Thou shalt not label me
A mindless, brute philosopher! Nay, nay,
Thou overladen glob of grease, thou imp,
Thou rubbish bucket fit for scrap, thou blue
And silver pile of bantha dung! Now, come,
And thee hence away lest someone sees.”
C-3P0 admonishing R2-D2 about entering the escape pod before jettisoning to the planet below.
If you like Star Wars this provides lots of amusement and it can be fun to see how your favorite scenes were rendered by the author. If you are a huge Shakespeare fan you might be a little disappointed. I enjoyed it and I hear he is working on the next one which I will gladly pick up. I hope after practicing on this, he does even better on the next. My biggest word of advice to the author is not try so hard to incorporate the spoken lines in the movie but stick with the intent.
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which shouldn’t be surprising since the movie is about 2 hours long. I do think it could have been so much better though. I will admit it is quite likely I would have enjoyed it more if I listened to it being well read and I could hear the iambic pentameter. But since I read the book quietly to myself I missed out on that. There were passages that I felt were absolutely brilliant and some that needed a bit more work. In my opinion, part of what hobbled the work is the author tried too hard in some scenes to keep as much of the original dialog as possible. Sometimes it worked sometimes it was a total flop. One of my favorite passages in the whole book was on p.102 starting line # 46. It was made entirely from whole cloth, a rather humorous exchange between the 2 stormtroopers guarding the Millennium Falcon in the Death Star hangar bay.
Another good line is “ -Thou shalt not label me
A mindless, brute philosopher! Nay, nay,
Thou overladen glob of grease, thou imp,
Thou rubbish bucket fit for scrap, thou blue
And silver pile of bantha dung! Now, come,
And thee hence away lest someone sees.”
C-3P0 admonishing R2-D2 about entering the escape pod before jettisoning to the planet below.
If you like Star Wars this provides lots of amusement and it can be fun to see how your favorite scenes were rendered by the author. If you are a huge Shakespeare fan you might be a little disappointed. I enjoyed it and I hear he is working on the next one which I will gladly pick up. I hope after practicing on this, he does even better on the next. My biggest word of advice to the author is not try so hard to incorporate the spoken lines in the movie but stick with the intent.
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LibraryThing member hadden
This was a fun read, and I recommend this book to Star Wars lovers, Sci-Fi fans and Shakespeare lovers all. Or for readers who just want something different and pleasant for an afternoon’s diversion. Reading the book made me realize how much of the first Star Wars movie script I remembered, and
Aye, say thou fool? Then fool, good Sir, am I.
But when thou sayest fool remember well
That fools do walk in foolish company.
So if I am a fool, perhaps ‘tis true
That other fools around me may be found.
For who is he who hath more foolish been-
The fool or the other fool who follows him?
This is a nice combination of several of Shakespeare’s fools speech and some Biblical Proverbs, of “The instruction of fools is folly” type. Several other accounts appear suddenly in the script, such as Luke Skywalker coming onstage, like a long ago in a galaxy far away Hamlet, holding a stormtrooper’s helmet in hand, and saying:
Alas, poor stormtrooper, I knew ye not,
Yet I have ta’en both uniform and life from thee.
What manner of man wert thou?
A man of inf’nite jest or cruelty?
A man with helpmate and children too?
A man who hath his Empire serv’d with pride?
This is also an excellent text for drama classes to perform, either in part or in whole. The text and storyline is well known, and the Shakespearean overlay gives it a performance gravitas that many high school and college students will appreciate.
In short, I enjoyed it.
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how fun it was to have the story placed in the 16th century English of Shakespeare. One quote tickled me, when Obi-Wan Kenobi was called a fool by Han Solo and he responded:Aye, say thou fool? Then fool, good Sir, am I.
But when thou sayest fool remember well
That fools do walk in foolish company.
So if I am a fool, perhaps ‘tis true
That other fools around me may be found.
For who is he who hath more foolish been-
The fool or the other fool who follows him?
This is a nice combination of several of Shakespeare’s fools speech and some Biblical Proverbs, of “The instruction of fools is folly” type. Several other accounts appear suddenly in the script, such as Luke Skywalker coming onstage, like a long ago in a galaxy far away Hamlet, holding a stormtrooper’s helmet in hand, and saying:
Alas, poor stormtrooper, I knew ye not,
Yet I have ta’en both uniform and life from thee.
What manner of man wert thou?
A man of inf’nite jest or cruelty?
A man with helpmate and children too?
A man who hath his Empire serv’d with pride?
This is also an excellent text for drama classes to perform, either in part or in whole. The text and storyline is well known, and the Shakespearean overlay gives it a performance gravitas that many high school and college students will appreciate.
In short, I enjoyed it.
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LibraryThing member Ginsusamurai
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars by Ian Doescher takes a brilliant idea and throws it in the Sarlac pit. The “play” is poorly written, forcing well known Shakespearean quotes on unsuspecting Star Wars characters in long winded monologues that lead nowhere and detract from the story itself. The
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unnecessary and disconcerting inclusion of dialogue for R2-D2, a robot “droid” character who was able to clearly portray his “lines” in beep and whistles in the original films, distracts from the story with attempts at comedic repartee with the audience while the other characters of the play are unaware and unable to hear him when he speaks. The heavy handed use of asides (almost every line) cause the story to drag on as the author constantly pummels the audience with his own interpretation of the characters’ inner conflicts. Rather than using the Shakesparean tradition of brief action descriptions, such as “they fight”, Doescher instead chose to introduce a Chorus character, who longwindedly describes simple actions that could have been performed by the characters or noted with a scene change. There is one clever scene between two Storm Troopers, when the Millenium Falcon has been brought onboard the Death Star, which only serves to emphasize how poorly the rest of the story was handled. Overall, if you are considering William Shakespeare’s Star Wars as a fan of the bard, don’t bother picking up this poor attempt at playwriting and prose. If you are a die hard Star Wars fan, you will at least appreciate the few shining moments that are worth reading in this otherwise useless book. Show Less
LibraryThing member HildebrandFamily
I cannot even describe what I felt when I saw this book. The fact that someone loved not only Star Wars but Shakespeare enough to combine them? It was a brilliant idea. And the execution was fantastic. The book was so witty and worked so well. I had no idea how iambic meter was going to work with
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this world but everything flowed beautifully. If you love Star Wars and Shakespeare and especially sharp humor, then pick up this book. It is amazing! Show Less
LibraryThing member bookworm12
Take two things I love, but never thought would collide and you’ve got this book. As an unashamed nerd I can quote lines from Star Wars like nobody’s business. I was raised by my Dad to embrace Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings and all the sci-fi and fantasy nerdiness in between. At the
This is a retelling of the first (technically fourth) Star Wars movie in Shakespearean style. My favorite parts are the characters’ inner monologues. Shakespeare uses that trick constantly to introduce audiences to a new character and it translates well in the Star Wars plots. The R2-D2 monologue was absolutely hilarious. He has an eloquent monologue and then aloud he says, “Meep beep bop meep.”
The language is really well done, embracing Shakespeare’s style without losing any of the Star Wars story or even really making it too ridiculous. There were so many parts that just cracked me up. There are also couple great illustrations throughout the book that add to the fun.
BOTTOM LINE: This book is geared to a VERY specific niche group. I happen to be the target audience, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to work for everyone. If you love both Shakespeare and Star Wars then get thee to a galactic bookstore immediately!
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same time I am a huge fan of the Bard. I took a class in college solely devoted to his works. I have slowly been working my way towards reading and then seeing every single one of his plays performed. So this unique combination of Jedi lore and iambic pentameter was impossible to resist. This is a retelling of the first (technically fourth) Star Wars movie in Shakespearean style. My favorite parts are the characters’ inner monologues. Shakespeare uses that trick constantly to introduce audiences to a new character and it translates well in the Star Wars plots. The R2-D2 monologue was absolutely hilarious. He has an eloquent monologue and then aloud he says, “Meep beep bop meep.”
The language is really well done, embracing Shakespeare’s style without losing any of the Star Wars story or even really making it too ridiculous. There were so many parts that just cracked me up. There are also couple great illustrations throughout the book that add to the fun.
BOTTOM LINE: This book is geared to a VERY specific niche group. I happen to be the target audience, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to work for everyone. If you love both Shakespeare and Star Wars then get thee to a galactic bookstore immediately!
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LibraryThing member atrautz
Every book I have read that has been published by Quirk Classics has been a fun read, and this one is no different. It would be fun to see this book adapted for the stage. The writing, which is in iambic pentameter, is very well done. This is a great book for both Star Wars and Shakespeare fans and
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I highly recommend checking it out. Show Less
LibraryThing member krau0098
I got a copy of this book to review from the Quirk Books in exchange for an honest review. When I saw this book was releasing I really wanted to read it, I love Shakespeare and Star Wars and was eager to see what would happen when the two are put together. The result was very pleasant; I enjoyed
This book covers Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in a very Shakespearean format. The book is broken down into Acts and Scenes. Each line is prefaced by who is speaking it (just like in a play). There is a Chorus that covers action scenes too. The whole thing is written in very Shakespeare like language. The book is also interspersed with some wonderful drawings of our heros in their Shakespeare-modified gear.
The only bad part about this book is that I already know how the story goes and ends. So given that, there weren’t a lot of surprises here...but there were some. One of my favorite additions were R2D2’s soliloquies. Sure he may speak in squeaks and beeps when others are on stage with him, but as soon as he is alone then the soliloquies start. R2D2 does elaborate asides on C3PO’s annoying personality and on his own sneaky plans. These are hilarious, add a lot of depth to R2D2, and are just perfect for him.
There are some other additions to the story as well. For example in an aside Obi-Wan debates what and what not to tell Luke about his father. These little asides actually add a lot of humor and thoughtfulness to the story. I thought they actually even improved the story some and made it more complex and interesting.
The language is very Shakespearean, but I still found it easy to read. I absolutely love reading Shakespeare and love the way it sounds. As with all Shakespeare it is best if read out loud, or at least out loud in your head. The banter between Han Solo and Princess Leia in this Shakespearean style is especially amusing. The only thing I would caution is that if you have historically really disliked or had trouble reading Shakespeare then you may not enjoy reading this.
The illustrations throughout added a lot to the story too. Some of them are pretty funny, for example Jabba the Hut in an Elizabethan Collar...or the picture on the back of the book where Vader realizes the Death Star has been blown up. I enjoyed the etch-like quality to them and thought they matched the tone of the story well.
Overall I approached this genre mish-mash with skepticism and a bit of tentative excitement and ended up very pleasantly surprised. I loved the way this was put together and thought it was incredibly well done. Doescher does an excellent job of blending the drama and wonder of Star Wars with the dramatic qualities of a good Shakespearean play. In fact Star Wars kind of lends itself to this type of reinvention. The additions Doescher have made (such as R2D2’s asides) have added a lot of depth and interest to the story as well. Highly recommended to Star Wars fans...and especially Star Wars fans who love Shakespeare.
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the dramatic way Star Wars is done in play form and the wonderful illustrations throughout. I really enjoyed reading this.This book covers Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in a very Shakespearean format. The book is broken down into Acts and Scenes. Each line is prefaced by who is speaking it (just like in a play). There is a Chorus that covers action scenes too. The whole thing is written in very Shakespeare like language. The book is also interspersed with some wonderful drawings of our heros in their Shakespeare-modified gear.
The only bad part about this book is that I already know how the story goes and ends. So given that, there weren’t a lot of surprises here...but there were some. One of my favorite additions were R2D2’s soliloquies. Sure he may speak in squeaks and beeps when others are on stage with him, but as soon as he is alone then the soliloquies start. R2D2 does elaborate asides on C3PO’s annoying personality and on his own sneaky plans. These are hilarious, add a lot of depth to R2D2, and are just perfect for him.
There are some other additions to the story as well. For example in an aside Obi-Wan debates what and what not to tell Luke about his father. These little asides actually add a lot of humor and thoughtfulness to the story. I thought they actually even improved the story some and made it more complex and interesting.
The language is very Shakespearean, but I still found it easy to read. I absolutely love reading Shakespeare and love the way it sounds. As with all Shakespeare it is best if read out loud, or at least out loud in your head. The banter between Han Solo and Princess Leia in this Shakespearean style is especially amusing. The only thing I would caution is that if you have historically really disliked or had trouble reading Shakespeare then you may not enjoy reading this.
The illustrations throughout added a lot to the story too. Some of them are pretty funny, for example Jabba the Hut in an Elizabethan Collar...or the picture on the back of the book where Vader realizes the Death Star has been blown up. I enjoyed the etch-like quality to them and thought they matched the tone of the story well.
Overall I approached this genre mish-mash with skepticism and a bit of tentative excitement and ended up very pleasantly surprised. I loved the way this was put together and thought it was incredibly well done. Doescher does an excellent job of blending the drama and wonder of Star Wars with the dramatic qualities of a good Shakespearean play. In fact Star Wars kind of lends itself to this type of reinvention. The additions Doescher have made (such as R2D2’s asides) have added a lot of depth and interest to the story as well. Highly recommended to Star Wars fans...and especially Star Wars fans who love Shakespeare.
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LibraryThing member AvengingExile
A fun little book! When I requested this book for Early Reviews, I was expecting some amusing one-off book that would be a gag gift to Star Wars fans. It turned out to be more than that. While you can pick out the lines that were almost directly lifted from Shakespeare, I was amazed at how much
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thought went into it. I am impressed at how much weight an old sci-fi adventure can be given with just a dash of inspiration from the Bard. Show Less
LibraryThing member auntmarge64
Very clever. Any Star Wars addict will easily be able to follow along and will probably be able to mentally hear the original dialogue while reading the book.
The Chorus relates some actions which are visualized in the film, such as Vader's torture of Leia, but these are relatively minor scenes.
For the non-SW nut, this will be an amusing but one-trick pony, but for the fan it should rate high on gift lists for holidays and birthdays.
The Chorus relates some actions which are visualized in the film, such as Vader's torture of Leia, but these are relatively minor scenes.
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And some of the dialogue, especially the asides, add certain meanings to events which are not in the original: most especially, R2's statement that he is guiding the action and talks in beeps and boops to hide his true power. This amused me, because my brother has been saying this for years. Every time R2 went back and forth between beeps and boops and his asides in English I laughed out loud.For the non-SW nut, this will be an amusing but one-trick pony, but for the fan it should rate high on gift lists for holidays and birthdays.
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LibraryThing member BJPetrie
I enjoyed this book thoroughly. This is a book that I would use to introduce students to Shakespeare's style. Often the topics of a Shakespeare play can be hard for younger readers, but this version of the familiar Star Wars story could be that bridge they need to jump into the Bard's works.
The
There is one thing that bothered me consistently. That was the lines of the non-human speakers such as R2-D2, and Chewbacca. Their sounds did not see to keep the same rhythm of the rest of the piece. I could be reading it poorly though and may be wrong.
Over all, I enjoyed this retelling of a classic tale, in a classical way. The story fits well as a Shakespearean play and I look forward to the other stories being adapted as well. We can only hope that some industrious fans will produce a fan-film of this adaptation.
The
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illustrations were wonderful. They blended the visual design of Star Wars well with Elizabethan fashion. I laughed heartily upon seeing Jabba the Hutt.There is one thing that bothered me consistently. That was the lines of the non-human speakers such as R2-D2, and Chewbacca. Their sounds did not see to keep the same rhythm of the rest of the piece. I could be reading it poorly though and may be wrong.
Over all, I enjoyed this retelling of a classic tale, in a classical way. The story fits well as a Shakespearean play and I look forward to the other stories being adapted as well. We can only hope that some industrious fans will produce a fan-film of this adaptation.
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LibraryThing member jenevolves
This was a surprisingly fun and well done mash-up! It really makes me want to buy everyone I know copies so we can stage this!
LibraryThing member mattries37315
Shakespeare and Star Wars come together to wondrous results thanks to the fantastic writing and imagination of Ian Doescher. In 176 pages of iambic pentameter verse, stage directions, and some of the best Elizabethan clothed Star War characters ever seen, the reader finds one of the best
The language is Shakespearean, but it's very readable and understandable even if you're not use to late 16th century language (even in quasi-form). The original dialogue of the Star Wars film is covered excellently with numerous additional lines of soliloquies and speeches by a variety of characters added by Doescher to give the book it's true Shakespearean element. However these additions don't take away from the film, they add to it by giving the characters a chance to express their inner thoughts that we never hear in the actual film. The soliloquies are full of spoilers from the prequels along with foreshadowing for the sequels that seem to be Doescher's shout out to Star Wars fans of all kinds.
I can't say how much I enjoyed this book and how much I think Star Wars fans will like it as well. If you're a Star Wars fan check out this book and you'll have a smile on your face as you imagine the film being transferred to an Elizabethan theater with all the action, adventure, and comedy taking place.
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adaptations of Star Wars ever.The language is Shakespearean, but it's very readable and understandable even if you're not use to late 16th century language (even in quasi-form). The original dialogue of the Star Wars film is covered excellently with numerous additional lines of soliloquies and speeches by a variety of characters added by Doescher to give the book it's true Shakespearean element. However these additions don't take away from the film, they add to it by giving the characters a chance to express their inner thoughts that we never hear in the actual film. The soliloquies are full of spoilers from the prequels along with foreshadowing for the sequels that seem to be Doescher's shout out to Star Wars fans of all kinds.
I can't say how much I enjoyed this book and how much I think Star Wars fans will like it as well. If you're a Star Wars fan check out this book and you'll have a smile on your face as you imagine the film being transferred to an Elizabethan theater with all the action, adventure, and comedy taking place.
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LibraryThing member Ben_Harnwell
Fun read and one that I would live to do with a room of fellow actor to perform a rehearsed reading. Good use of Shakespearean terms and even some misquotes (homages) of famous plays.
All in all though it is a gimmick and probably more for fans of Shakespeare or at least an appreciation of his
Good to finish it around Star Ward day.
May the Fourth be with you.
All in all though it is a gimmick and probably more for fans of Shakespeare or at least an appreciation of his
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works AND fans of Star Wars. Good to finish it around Star Ward day.
May the Fourth be with you.
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LibraryThing member TheDivineOomba
Its Star Wars no Its Shakespeare! Whatever it is, it is cute - the author knows his stuff. The problem is, this is a one time read. It doesn't add anything to either Star Wars or Shakespeare, however well done. Its a novelty read.
LibraryThing member philae_02
Words cannot express the skill in which Doescher succeeded in creating an iambic pentameter version of Star Wars: A New Hope. This delightfully funny and clever work is truly that of the "bard" or what-would-have-been anyway. From R2-D2's thoughtful soliloquies to the sage advice of Obi-Wan Kenobi,
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this work is a must-read for any Star Wars fan. I hope that Doescher continues with the Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. :) Show Less
LibraryThing member aethercowboy
William Shakespeare's Star Wars is what you would expect from the title. Ian Doescher, in his first book, presents a what-if: "What if William Shakespeare had written Star Wars?" This, more or less, would be the result.
Doescher does not only a faithful job of capturing the events of Star Wars (and
My only complaint on this story is that Doescher seemed to liberally use the Chorus, sometimes in a place where I, a non-Shakespearean scholar, would expect stage direction and want the characters to act out the scene, instead of having some person or persons tell me what's going on. Aside from that, though, this is an interesting book, and worth being on the shelf of any Star Wars (and possibly, Shakespeare) fan.
Doescher does not only a faithful job of capturing the events of Star Wars (and
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the voice of Shakespeare), but also throws an occasional joke out there, especially the one regarding Who Shot First. It's these subtle gems that, like in the day of Shakespeare's plays, reward the viewer who is up to speed on not just the story, but the culture.My only complaint on this story is that Doescher seemed to liberally use the Chorus, sometimes in a place where I, a non-Shakespearean scholar, would expect stage direction and want the characters to act out the scene, instead of having some person or persons tell me what's going on. Aside from that, though, this is an interesting book, and worth being on the shelf of any Star Wars (and possibly, Shakespeare) fan.
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LibraryThing member samaside
Title: William Shakespeare’s Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope
Author: Ian Doescher
Release Date: July 2, 2013
Publisher: Quirk Books
Source: Quirk Books
Genre(s): Science Fiction, Theatre, Drama, Parody, Humor, Media Tie-In
Rating: ★★★★★
Review Spoilers: Low
All right, so, I can’t even with this
I’m going to lie and pretend I even know what iambic pentameter means because to me it just means ‘Shakespeare prose.” Somehow in my high school education I missed that whole concept. In New York they did it in your junior year. In Missouri, they did it your sophomore year. I moved to Missouri for my junior and senior years. So basically I failed ever quiz that asked anything about basically anything related to the actual structure of Shakespearean literature.
Iambic pentameter also, incidentally, turns out to be the only writing style that I can’t speed read. So I actually got to really sit down and enjoy this book.
But I am getting way off topic here.
You need this book. Yes, you need this book. Not much of a Shakespeare fan back in high school? Who cares. You read it. We all did. At the very least we all know how Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet go, right? Now imagine that but with more lightsabers, droids, and Death Stars. Tell me that high school you isn’t flipping his or her sh*t right now.
If you do like Shakespeare, it’s even better! Because then you can actually appreciate the full effect of what the author is doing in this book and also just how dedicated he had to have been to pull it off. You’ll also be better equipped than casual readers when it comes to noticing some of the lines Doescher re-purposes from various Shakespearean plays. I don’t want to give them all way but let’s just say there may be some thumb biting at one point or another…
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars covers the first Star Wars film as should be evident in the subtitle: “Verily, A New Hope.” It begins with a Shakespeare-ized crawl and moves through all the classic scenes. The author even chooses to include some of the added scenes from the remastered trilogy – such as Han’s meeting with Jabba the Hutt before he takes off from Mos Eisley. It’s fantastic – and often hilarious – to read all those scenes and to zip through that well known dialogue and have it completely and totally altered just by the way it’s written. So many classic lines only get better with a dated, theatrical “ne’er” and “aye” thrown in for good measure.
Some of the best scenes, however, are the ones that aren’t quite in the actual movies. There are a lot of asides where characters reveal their inner thoughts. Darth Vader’s inner monologues are interesting to read – though not quite as much so as R2-D2′s asides. That little astromech droid knows a lot more than he’s letting on and you find that out pretty quickly. Though he speaks to everyone in beeps and whistles (cleverly planned to rhyme often times) he tells the reader just what’s on his mind and what he’s planning.
“But hear the voice of R2-D2, all; My noble purpose I’ll accomplish yet – to take to Obi-Wan the princess’ news, to take my Master Luke away from here, and, in the end, perhaps more vital still – to make connection twixt the two good men.”
Another of my favorite scenes was between the two stormtroopers who are guarding the ramp of the Millenium Falcon after the scanning team goes in to try and locate the passengers. The one pieces together basically the entire plot including the droids escaping to Tatooine, their flight from the Millenium Falcon, and even – after hearing a slight noise – deduces that they could all still be hiding on the ship. His partner, of course, tells him he’s crazy. And then they get called up the ramp and taken out. It was just a really funny, drawn out moment. It was also reminiscent of scenes in Shakespearean plays where guards stand watch and prattle on. I think that happened in Hamlet a few times if not other plays as well. (I’m really rusty on my Shakespeare here, folks.)
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars is just filled with all these incredible moments. I can’t even really find the words to express just how much I enjoyed reading through it. Every familiar scene just came alive. It was like reading a version of Joss Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing. It’s straight up classic Shakespeare but the presentation just makes it a million times better. That’s kind of what reading this book was like but even better. The artwork is pretty cool, too. I mean, who doesn’t want to see Han Solo in Shakespearean garb?
This is one of those books that I have absolutely no problem recommending that everyone read. I mean, people who hate Star Wars and hate Shakespeare aren’t going to enjoy it but those are terrible people and we must not speak of them. You, on the other hand, are awesome. And you will appreciate this book.
Final Thoughts:
Pick up this book as soon as you possibly can. Share it with your friends. Buy it for them for Christmas. Do what ever you can to promote this book because it’s fantastic. And if we support it hopefully we’ll get to see The Empire Striketh Back and Return of the Jedi sooner than later. Also: there’s apparently a lot of people online calling for Quirk Books to find a way to acquire theatre performance rights for the book. Can we take a moment to appreciate how AWESOME that would be?
Author: Ian Doescher
Release Date: July 2, 2013
Publisher: Quirk Books
Source: Quirk Books
Genre(s): Science Fiction, Theatre, Drama, Parody, Humor, Media Tie-In
Rating: ★★★★★
Review Spoilers: Low
All right, so, I can’t even with this
Show More
book right now. Quirk Books knows how to spin a crazy mash up book – just look at the success they’ve seen with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – but their William Shakespeare’s Star Wars mash up is pretty much the best thing ever. Honestly, I can’t believe that this is author Ian Doescher’s first book. I mean, who picks iambic pentameter for their first book?I’m going to lie and pretend I even know what iambic pentameter means because to me it just means ‘Shakespeare prose.” Somehow in my high school education I missed that whole concept. In New York they did it in your junior year. In Missouri, they did it your sophomore year. I moved to Missouri for my junior and senior years. So basically I failed ever quiz that asked anything about basically anything related to the actual structure of Shakespearean literature.
Iambic pentameter also, incidentally, turns out to be the only writing style that I can’t speed read. So I actually got to really sit down and enjoy this book.
But I am getting way off topic here.
You need this book. Yes, you need this book. Not much of a Shakespeare fan back in high school? Who cares. You read it. We all did. At the very least we all know how Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet go, right? Now imagine that but with more lightsabers, droids, and Death Stars. Tell me that high school you isn’t flipping his or her sh*t right now.
If you do like Shakespeare, it’s even better! Because then you can actually appreciate the full effect of what the author is doing in this book and also just how dedicated he had to have been to pull it off. You’ll also be better equipped than casual readers when it comes to noticing some of the lines Doescher re-purposes from various Shakespearean plays. I don’t want to give them all way but let’s just say there may be some thumb biting at one point or another…
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars covers the first Star Wars film as should be evident in the subtitle: “Verily, A New Hope.” It begins with a Shakespeare-ized crawl and moves through all the classic scenes. The author even chooses to include some of the added scenes from the remastered trilogy – such as Han’s meeting with Jabba the Hutt before he takes off from Mos Eisley. It’s fantastic – and often hilarious – to read all those scenes and to zip through that well known dialogue and have it completely and totally altered just by the way it’s written. So many classic lines only get better with a dated, theatrical “ne’er” and “aye” thrown in for good measure.
Some of the best scenes, however, are the ones that aren’t quite in the actual movies. There are a lot of asides where characters reveal their inner thoughts. Darth Vader’s inner monologues are interesting to read – though not quite as much so as R2-D2′s asides. That little astromech droid knows a lot more than he’s letting on and you find that out pretty quickly. Though he speaks to everyone in beeps and whistles (cleverly planned to rhyme often times) he tells the reader just what’s on his mind and what he’s planning.
“But hear the voice of R2-D2, all; My noble purpose I’ll accomplish yet – to take to Obi-Wan the princess’ news, to take my Master Luke away from here, and, in the end, perhaps more vital still – to make connection twixt the two good men.”
Another of my favorite scenes was between the two stormtroopers who are guarding the ramp of the Millenium Falcon after the scanning team goes in to try and locate the passengers. The one pieces together basically the entire plot including the droids escaping to Tatooine, their flight from the Millenium Falcon, and even – after hearing a slight noise – deduces that they could all still be hiding on the ship. His partner, of course, tells him he’s crazy. And then they get called up the ramp and taken out. It was just a really funny, drawn out moment. It was also reminiscent of scenes in Shakespearean plays where guards stand watch and prattle on. I think that happened in Hamlet a few times if not other plays as well. (I’m really rusty on my Shakespeare here, folks.)
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars is just filled with all these incredible moments. I can’t even really find the words to express just how much I enjoyed reading through it. Every familiar scene just came alive. It was like reading a version of Joss Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing. It’s straight up classic Shakespeare but the presentation just makes it a million times better. That’s kind of what reading this book was like but even better. The artwork is pretty cool, too. I mean, who doesn’t want to see Han Solo in Shakespearean garb?
This is one of those books that I have absolutely no problem recommending that everyone read. I mean, people who hate Star Wars and hate Shakespeare aren’t going to enjoy it but those are terrible people and we must not speak of them. You, on the other hand, are awesome. And you will appreciate this book.
Final Thoughts:
Pick up this book as soon as you possibly can. Share it with your friends. Buy it for them for Christmas. Do what ever you can to promote this book because it’s fantastic. And if we support it hopefully we’ll get to see The Empire Striketh Back and Return of the Jedi sooner than later. Also: there’s apparently a lot of people online calling for Quirk Books to find a way to acquire theatre performance rights for the book. Can we take a moment to appreciate how AWESOME that would be?
Show Less
LibraryThing member catya77
This is the first (chronological movie release date) Star Wars told in a parody of Shakespeare. The plot is virtually the same as the movie, Episode 4.
Humor and drama abound throughout the book in this version/telling.
Characters have similar motivations, yet these are a little more
Overall, a fun read.
Humor and drama abound throughout the book in this version/telling.
Characters have similar motivations, yet these are a little more
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explicitly/differently expressed, as in often the case in screenplays.Overall, a fun read.
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LibraryThing member RivkaBelle
Review originally published on my blog: AWordsWorth.blogspot.com
Book provided by publisher for review
As a Literature major, I'm one of those people who actually likes Shakespeare. In fact, I sort of love him. I love the rhythm of the words, all the turns of phrase he added to the English language,
How to describe this story, this reading experience ... The text is a play, so it's written with stage directions and pretty bare bones in terms of description and etcetera. There's much dialogue, and not a few monologues (true confession: I loved the monologues). The story is familiar and much loved. Seeing it told in a new way brings new life, new sparkle, to the story. And the characters. Maybe it's just the simple change in language, or maybe it's reading the words instead of watching it play out on screen, but it felt almost like a totally new experience. In truth, it felt as if I were reading any Shakespeare play: I knew what was coming, how it'd end, and who was ultimately the hero -- but I loved the reading of it anyway. Also, we all know I'm a huge Han Solo fan, and Doescher gave him some lines that made my heart. stop. As if Han needed to get any dreamier, give him a Shakespearian accent, and this girl's a goner. Sa-woon.
Book provided by publisher for review
As a Literature major, I'm one of those people who actually likes Shakespeare. In fact, I sort of love him. I love the rhythm of the words, all the turns of phrase he added to the English language,
Show More
I love the stories themselves. I've also come to terms with the fact that I am, without a doubt, a geek. And I love Star Wars (original theatrical releases of the original trilogy only, thanks!). So when I saw that Quirk Books was publishing Star Wars told a`la Shakespeare? I may have begged to be added to the review list.How to describe this story, this reading experience ... The text is a play, so it's written with stage directions and pretty bare bones in terms of description and etcetera. There's much dialogue, and not a few monologues (true confession: I loved the monologues). The story is familiar and much loved. Seeing it told in a new way brings new life, new sparkle, to the story. And the characters. Maybe it's just the simple change in language, or maybe it's reading the words instead of watching it play out on screen, but it felt almost like a totally new experience. In truth, it felt as if I were reading any Shakespeare play: I knew what was coming, how it'd end, and who was ultimately the hero -- but I loved the reading of it anyway. Also, we all know I'm a huge Han Solo fan, and Doescher gave him some lines that made my heart. stop. As if Han needed to get any dreamier, give him a Shakespearian accent, and this girl's a goner. Sa-woon.
Show Less
ISBN
1594746370 / 9781594746376