Finally, after a month of having this book, I finished it!

This book is divided into two parts:

1. 90% of the book is composed of plays. Of course, there are boring plays, but others were fun. There are short plays, but some are longer. Giving this book a 5-star review was not because I loved all the plays; in fact, I hated many plays. The reason I gave this book a 5-star review was because of the journey. It gave my life meaning. Every day I woke up knowing I had the task of reading and completing all of Shakespeare. It gave boredom a fun trait. About 15% of the plays are 20-29 pages long. About 30% are 40+ pages long. And the remaining 55% of the plays are 30-39 pages long.

2. The other 10% of the book is composed of poems. There is not much to say about the poetry section. All I can say is that it was short!

I really liked the adventure of Shakespeare; I enjoyed experiencing all his plays and understanding how Shakespeare wrote. While I surf through the ink, I began to imagine the world of Shakespeare, as if the characters are all acting in my head. I can imagine them clearly…

When we reread Hamlet in 2025, J enthused about every reference to Denmark.

"Give me my robe. Put on my crown; I have immortal longings in me".

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) is acknowledged as the greatest dramatist of all time. He excels in plot, poetry and wit, and his talent encompasses the great tragedies of ‘Hamlet’, ‘King Lear’, ‘Othello’ and ‘Macbeth’ as well as the moving history plays and the comedies such as ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ and ‘As You Like It’ with their magical combination of humour, ribaldry and tenderness.

This volume presents all the plays and it also includes Shakespeare’s Sonnets, as well as his longer poems ‘Venus and Adonis’ and ‘The Rape of Lucrece’.

I have finally done it!

I am so pleased to say that I have finally finished reading The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare. I feel like I have been reading this book for years; oh wait; I have. I read the sonnets and poems really early on and then I started working on the plays. After a few plays I found myself in a reading slump so I decided to read one play each month instead. So for the last couple of years I have been reading a Shakespeare play each month and now I have read them all.

I had previously read Shakespeare in school and I have watched many films and television shows based on Shakespeare plays, so I was familiar with some of the works before I read them. Having some familiarity was a huge help while I was getting use to Shakespeare writing style. I loved reading the original work and then watching an adaptation of it. That became a kind of ritual for me each month.

I am glad that I read every play, but I will admit that I enjoyed some a lot more than others. I found I really liked the comedies, I liked the tragedies that I was already familiar with, and I liked a few of the histories. I also found that the comedies were easier to read; that probably help with my enjoyment of them.

After reading the complete works it is easy to see why Shakespeare is still so loved and respected to this day. I will definitely be reading certain plays, poems and sonnets in the future, and I am glad that I now have a better understand of William Shakespeare’s work.

The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare is a collection that everyone should try and read in their lifetime.

Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com

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It all ended so fast. I feel like it's just January, but look at the calendar - it's December! You surely remember earlier in the year when I said I had put a challenge for myself. This was the Shakespeare Challenge, in which I had to read all the works known by William Shakespeare. Guess what? I finally read them all!

It started in January. I was bored and I didn't know what to read. One day I went to the library and checked out a book that contained 4 of Shakespeare's best plays. I read it and soon after I told myself I needed to read more of his works. Thus, I got another book: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. 11 months after, I finally managed to read them all.

The task of reading Shakespeare's works was not as difficult or tedious as it seems to be. It took me long because I was most of the time busy and didn't have time to read, so I read them in-between classes and studying. To my surprise, I loved some of the plays, others disturbed me, and others made me laugh out loud.

The first plays I read were the most popular ones, and were the ones I enjoyes the most. The tragedies worked better for me than the comedies, with the exception of Romeo and Juliet, which I did not despise but didn't love either. My favourite ones are probably Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello and A Midsummer's Night Dream.

About the historical plays, I can say they were harder to read because the tone was more serious and they were not meant to entertain, but they were worth reading all the same. I think the best ones here were the ones about Richard II and III.

As for the poems, they were good too. They were beautiful, and this is said by someone who is not used to read poetry.

I tell you, this challenge is one of the best I've put to myself. For next year, I'm not sure if I'll put more aside the Goodreads one because of my studies, but I certainly will read more classics (for example something by Jane Austen).

I am going to try to read this entire book over the course of 2016, following Matthew J. Franck's 2016 Shakespeare In A Year reading plan. (Hat tip to Emily for letting me know this exists!) I've only ever read maybe eight or ten different Shakespeare plays, and other than a re-read of Hamlet in 2011 while preparing to read Infinite Jest I don't think I've ever picked one up outside of a classroom setting.

This review is a work in progress. I'll try to update it each time I finish a play.

The Two Gentlemen of Verona: This is believed to be the earliest, or one of the earliest, of Shakespeare's plays, and it shows. It is...not very good. It has a lot of elements that will appear again in other Shakespeare plays, and there are definitely some funny and clever moments, but the last act is awful. The conflict just falls away! All friendships and romantic relationships are restored! This one is really only interesting for the glimpses of what Shakespeare will become.

The Taming of the Shrew: Oof, another rough one. It's clearly more developed than The Two Gentlemen of Verona, but this play hinges entirely on a man gaslighting an overly opinionated woman until she turns into a submissive wife. There's also the somewhat bizarre fact that this is two plays rolled up into one, with the opening act taking place in a tavern, setting up the staging of a play-within-a-play, and then never returning to the characters in the tavern.

1, 2, 3 Henry VI: This was my first time reading any of Shakespeare's history plays, and this was also the first time I had regrets about buying the inexpensive but bare-bones Oxford Shakespeare, which does not contain any footnotes. I definitely know more about the Wars of the Roses now than I did before reading these three plays, but...not by much. A lot went over my head, and there were so many different characters that I had a hard time keeping track of everyone. I suspect the history plays are going to be an ongoing slog for me.

Titus Andronicus: While it was refreshing to get a break after three history plays in a row, Titus Andronicus is pretty much a nonstop bloodbath. I enjoyed parts of it, especially toward the end when Titus begins getting his revenge, but there's a rape scene, multiple mutilations, probably an even higher body count than 1, 2, and 3 Henry combined, and one single black character who is, cringeworthily, pretty much evil incarnate.

Richard III: This play continues the action of the three Henry VI plays. It is, I think, a better-written and more interesting play than its predecessors, but it's also the play that totally killed my momentum. I fell behind schedule for the first time since starting this project, and after finishing the play a few days late I decided to give myself "a short break" that lasted almost the entire rest of the month of March.

Edward III: I am skipping this one for now. Its authorship is contested - Shakespeare probably only wrote portions of it at most - and the thought of facing another history play kept extending my "short break." I'll try to come back to this one later, but given the questions about its authorship, I won't feel too guilty if I never do get around to it.

Comedy of Errors: This play is really funny and silly and was a welcome point of return after taking a few weeks off. It's about two pairs of estranged twins and ongoing cases of mistaken identities. It's a little frustrating in that all four of them know they have a twin, and the two from Syracuse should have been able to put things together that they were getting the royal treatment in Ephesus because people were mistaking them for their twins, but nobody makes these connections until the very end. Nevertheless, this was probably the first play of this Shakespeare project that I fully enjoyed.

The Oxford Complete served as my guide through Shakespeare's plays. Its introduction is highly recommended and very insightful. The book itself is rather bulky, so I often restored to Kindle or to paperbacks for some of the plays. The book collects all known Shakespeare plays and attributions including two copies of King Lear, Edward III, Henry VIII, and Two Noble Kinsman all in chronological order with a one-page introduction to each play. I did not really use the Glossary due to the book's bulk and the inconvenience of their having placed it at the end, and there are no notes in the text. This is a blessing (fewer distractions from the text) and a curse (fewer insights into the texts) so your mileage may vary.

As for other versions of Shakespeare, I found that the Folger Shakespeare was more practical (numbered notes on even pages, Shakespeare's original on the odd pages) than the Signet Classics which I had read in high school (non-numbered notes at the bottom of the page). It was fun, however, to see my notes from thirty years ago as I was reading!

I would still recommend the Oxford for its completeness and the quality of the printing for the Shakespeare fan with a hefty bookshelf to store it. Regardless, the Bard is a pleasure in nearly any format.

I challenged myself at the beginning of this year to read The Complete Works of William Shakespeare

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I have reviewed each play individually and have shelved them here on GR so won’t comment here about any specific play.

I wasn’t sure when I started this that I would be able to persevere and finish. This was indeed a challenge - it took quite a bit of time and dedication to get through all this material in one year. I’m thankful I made the effort.

As a lifelong reader, to me, this is kind of the Mount Everest of reading. It can be difficult to follow the dialogue and plot in many parts. Fortunately, there are numerous resources out there about William Shakespeare’s works. From Cliffsnotes, Sparknotes, Folgers Shakespeare, and Wikipedia to The Shakespeare Network on YouTube, I admittedly leaned very heavily on about every summary and synopsis that I could. I have to give a special shout out to The Shakespeare Network on YouTube. Excellent audio productions of everything Shakespeare - it was invaluable.

Collectively, Shakespeare’s works are epic. Comedies, dramas, historical plays, beautifully crafted poems and sonnets. It’s been a very worthwhile reading challenge.

I read The Complete Works of William Shakespeare in this order(credit Benjamin McEvoy for the list - which does well in starting big and allows the reader to get used to Shakespeare which helps on some of the more obscure plays).

☑️ 1. Hamlet - 1/1/23 — 5 Stars
☑️ 2. King Lear - 1/7/23 — 3 Stars
☑️ 3. Much Ado About Nothing 1/14/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 4. Romeo and Juliet - 1/20/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 5. Othello - 1/30/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 6. The Tempest - 2/22/23 - 3 stars
☑️ 7. Macbeth - 2/25/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 8. Richard II - 2/26/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 9. A Midsummer Night's Dream -3/1/23 - 3 stars
☑️ 9.5 - Poem Break - Venus and Adonis - 3/12/13 - 4 stars
☑️ 10. Julius Caesar - 3/16/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 11. King Henry IV, Part 1 - 4/6/23 - 3.5 stars
☑️ 12. King Henry IV, Part 2 - 4/27/23 - 3.5 stars
☑️ 13. As You Like It - 5/6/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 14. The Merchant of Venice - 5/10/23 - 4.5 stars
☑️ 15. King Henry V - 5/12/23 - 3.5 stars
☑️ 16. Twelth Night - 5/20/23 - 2 stars
☑️ 17. King Henry VI, Part 1 - 5/21/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 18. All's Well That Ends Well - 5/28/23 - 2.5 stars
☑️ 18.5 Poem Break - The Rape of Lucrece - 5/28/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 19. King Henry VI, Part 2 - 6/7/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 20. The Winter's Tale - 6/12/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 21. Love's Labour's Lost - 7/3/23 - 3 stars
☑️ 22. King Henry VI, Part 3 - 8/25/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 23. Measure for Measure - 8/27/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 24. King Richard the Third - 9/1/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 25. The Taming of the Shrew - 9/10/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 26. Coriolanus - 9/13/23 - 3 stars
☑️ 27. Titus Andronicus - 9/20/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 28. Timon of Athens - 9/23/23 - 3 stars
☑️ 29. King John - 9/30/23 - 2.5 stars
☑️ 29.5 Poem Break - A Lover's Complaint - 10/1/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 30. Troilus and Cressida - 10/3/23 - 1 star
☑️ 31. The Comedy of Errors - 10/5/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 32. Cymbeline - 10/8/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 33. The Merry Wives of Windsor - 10/21/23 - 3.5 stars
☑️ 34. King Henry VIII - 10/22/23 - 3 stars
☑️ 35. The Two Gentlemen of Verona - 10/25/23 - 2 stars
☑️ 36. Pericles - 10/26/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 37. Antony and Cleopatra - 10/27/23 - 4 stars
☑️ 37.5 - Poem Break - The Passionate Pilgrim and The Phoenix and the Turtle - 10/1/23 - 5 stars
☑️ 38. Shakespeare's Sonnets - 9/6/23 - 2.5 stars

Perhaps I’ll try this challenge again someday. I’ll at least revisit many of these plays. This was great.

My beloved Complete Shakespeare from college into which I occasionally dip. I have only read certain plays and a few sonnets. Have not nearly completed my education in the Bard, but I like knowing it's there.

May 28, 2015: re-read Hamlet. Still not my favorite. I've always wished I liked or at least appreciated it more. This weekend will re-watch Kenneth Branaugh's "full-text" film, hoping for the "aha" moment.

Not enough dragons.

Very heavy. Do not read in bath. Oh, and some great plays.

It's Shakespeare, great stories, difficult language? What more can one say about most people's favourite genius? He proves human nature hasn't changed over centuries and it's what we relate to that makes the best stories. This book stood me in good stead through Uni studies -6 or so in 101 and 12 to 14 of his Tragedies in second year. I only had to buy Hamlet as 1 professor keen on having the right page quoted etc.
I have not read it all - but Hamlet for HSC, Open Foundation, 1st year and 2nd year at Uni (so think I finally got it!); loved Patrick Stewart as Claudius in BBC version. What can I add to probably thousands of reviewers? I do enjoy Shakespeare when have to study him and have it explained by teachers and the critics etc. Still haven't settled in to read the ones I haven't yet. Sonnets were brilliant!
Midsummer Night's Dream easiest to simply enjoy.
Romeo & Juliet, star in so many films of American high school it must be embedded permanently in their curriculum. Othello, yes that took me by surprise. King Lear, I loved the irony. MacBeth, yes, in fact I think having seen it played live does add so much, even beyond movies with the "greats" of the acting world. The Merchant of Venice, takes me right back to high school in the sixties, maybe my first encounter with Shakespeare? To pick one as my favourite, Twelth Night I think. They all had their special moments and lessons.