Barrons Educational Series Macbeth

Book arrived quickly and in good used condition. Pages were highlighted with pen but I don't mind this as it is always interesting to see what other people consider to be the highlights.

I'm a literature teacher, who was told that the students in my class who needed additional instructional support 'could not understand Shakespeare'. It's bull, especially when you consider the allusions to this play in popular movies like The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, and The Lion King being a loose retelling of Hamlet.The solution? I used my teacher's choice money to buy a set of these to give to the students with Individualized Education Plans. The original language is there for them to read and be exposed to, and facing it, a 'just plain English' version. We always read the Elizabethan words in class and discussed thoroughly what was going on and why, but those with this version could read and understand what was going on at home.My only problem was that some of them reeaaaally didn't want to give it back - even after we'd finished the play and moved on. ;)

I teach 11th and twelfth grade English, and Shakespeare is, of course, part of the literary canon. Many of my students, however, are somewhat allergic to Shakespeare, and I have found this book to be an enormous help in helping them get over their reluctance to at least put in some effort. Kudos to the genius who first came up with this idea. The pages are even set up so that the original text and the modern translation are on opposite pages, and if one is longer than the other, the shorter page ends a little shorter than the other, so the student does not have to constantly flip pages back and forth.The translations are concise, yet pretty accurate, and the modern vocabulary still manages to challenge the students' verbal awareness.Do not make the mistake, however, of thinking that this wonderful book is only for students -- if you have ever wondered just what in the world Shakespeare is saying, this book is enormously helpful. And once you get the hang of it, his other plays (and sonnets) become that much clearer. But even if translating Shakespeare on your own is still too difficult for you after having read this version of Macbeth, the same publisher has also printed other plays of Shakespeare with the same clarifying results.I recommend this highly for both students and the curious. Your literary world will never be the same.

We've had good luck with the "Made Easy" series... but this version of Macbeth is trickier than others in the series. Macbeth is a trickier play, I grant you. But the paraphrasing does not follow the Shakespeare as well as it could.Still, this is a great book. But because the kids are having a hard time with it, I whipped out the LEGO Shakespeare tragedies book and the Gareth Hinds Macbeth book to coax them along.

This was the perfect way to introduce Shakespeare to two gifted 6th graders. The side by side Shakespearean English and a modern translation made it so accessible for teaching this age group. Discussion questions in the back are great too. My two students are having a great time preparing opening statements for a mock case of People vs Macbeth.