Happy world book day!
Sometimes I get sent theatre related books in the post and don’t get around to reading them all. So I thought what better way to celebrate World Book Day than to gather up some of the most recent additions to the book shelf and tell you all about them.
This Is Shakespeare by Emma Smith
This book is great for someone like me who struggles to understand Shakespeare because of the way in which the text is written.
So to have a book that takes each of his plays and explains the story in plain, easy to understand English is ideal.
I’ve always avoided seeing Shakespeare plays because I struggle to follow what is happening but with this book now in my possession, I feel inspired to book to see some Shakespeare knowing I can read up and understand the story beforehand.
The Sound of Music Family Scrapbook by Fred Bronson
This is a lovely coffee table book for fans of The Sound of Music.
It follows the journeys of each of the children in the film and is a literal scrapbook of photos, documentation from the film and stories.
I think you need to be a pretty hardcore fan of the film to really appreciate this book because there are only so many ‘call sheets’ one person needs to see but for lifelong fans of the film there is some extremely rare pieces in this collection.
SOMETHING WONDERFUL – Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution by Todd S. Purdum
This is a very informative read and would be ideal for Musical Theatre students who are looking for more than just a summary of the writing duo’s work together.
But for those less interested in the nitty gritty of it all, you could probably learn everything you need to know about Rodgers and Hammerstein from Wikipedia. You probably don’t need to work your way through more than three hundred pages.
That said, it was easy to read and I certainly feel like I know my theatrical history a bit better for it now.
Dear Evan Hansen
I was delighted when I heard that the hit Broadway musical Dear Evan Hansen had been turned into a novel.
I don’t know what I was expecting when I read it but I found it a little dull because it is literally the stage show but on paper. I didn’t find anything new or exciting about it and didn’t finish reading it.
If you’ve seen the show on stage then you may not find it particularly exciting but if you have only heard the music and want to know the story that goes along with it then this is the perfect way to experience the story.
