Romeo and Juliet (No Fear Shakespeare Graphic Novels) by SparkNotes Editors, William Shakespeare, Matt Wiegle (Illustrator), Matt Wiegle (Adapted by)

From the Publisher

No Fear Shakespeare Graphic Novels is a series based on the translated texts of the plays found in No Fear Shakespeare. The original No Fear series made Shakespeare’s plays much easier to read, but these dynamic visual adaptations are impossible to put down. Each of the titles is illustrated in its own unique style, but all are distinctively offbeat, slightly funky, and appealing to teen readers. Each book will feature:

• Illustrated cast of characters
• A helpful plot summary
• Line-by-line translations of the original play
• Illustrations that show the reader exactly what’s happening in each scene—making the plot and characters even clearer than in the original No Fear Shakespeare books

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up -A visually engaging format includes clearly delineated acts and scenes as well as skilled use of dark and light to highlight mood and recurring themes. Many of the images are striking, particularly the white-on-black night scenes describing Queen Maba's dream appearance and Julieta's decision to drink poison. Well-drawn characters such as the brash young men, the Nurse, and Friar Lawrence come to life in these panels. This is especially true for Juliet, whose early images of youthful innocence contrast sharply with her distraught face as the story progresses. With the exception of Capulet and Montague, who look more like grandfathers than fathers to such young teens, visual characterizations are accurate. Text for this version comes from an abridgment of the modern English translation found in No Fear Shakespeare (Spark, 2007). Readers will not encounter any of Shakespearea's language or poetry in this adaptation. Even familiar speeches such as "O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?" are modernized to "Oh Romeo, Romeo, why must you be Romeo?" A limited number of footnotes explain references to unfamiliar phrases, particularly bawdy humor. Readers interested in graphic-novel versions with excerpts from Shakespearea's original play should try Romeo and Juliet (Barrona's, 2005), edited by Philip Page and Marilyn Petit, or Richard Appignanesia's adaptation (Abrams, 2007).-Barbara M. Moon, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, NY

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