Book Review: Brick Shakespeare
BrickShakespeare The Tragedies—Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and Julius Caesar.
By John McCann, Monica Sweeney, and Becky Thomas
Skyhorse Publishing paperback, also available as an ebook.
ISBN: 978-1-62636-303-8
Price: $19,95
Over the last years, tens of LEGO related books have been launched all over the world, from the more purist part of the LEGO hobby, like MINDSTORMS related books, until the most surprising ones like The Brick Testament.
Some weeks ago a new book of this second group arrived to our redaction: “Brick Shakespeare, The Tragedies—Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and Julius Caesar”. With this long and interesting title, we can find that four tragedies written by William Shakespeare recreated with LEGO bricks and minifigs.
On the cover we can see some pictures of the scenes recreated inside. The book has soft, bright cover and 350 pages with most the scenes and acts of the tragedies. Some of them have been abridged but the main essence is totally maintained. The pages have black background which helps to highlight the content.
Every tragedy starts with an introduction, which explains the background and some technical features. After that, there is another page with the cast, with pictures of the main characters, and a list of the others.
And let’s start with the tragedy. It is separated in Acts and Scenes. Like in a real theatre, the sets are limited and this is something that definitely help in the production of the book. John McCann, the photographer, could recreate most of the scenes with a limited number of sets and “only” moving all the characters to the correct place. This doesn’t mean that this was easy. I am pretty sure that John took thousand of pictures until he got the result he wanted.
During all the acts and scenes there are a mixtures of pictures, text and pictures with text. This makes the book easier to read and follow.
The Collectable MiniFigures have allowed to recreate new and exciting worlds, and in this book we can find some examples, like the Roman Emperor (Series 9) or the Roman Soldier (Series 6).
This book is totally recommended for the people who wants to introduce to Shakespeare’s tragedies in a fun and exciting way. The book employs original, characteristic language in abridged form and this makes easy to read it, staying true to its origin.
About the Authors
John McCann likes listening music and practicing his photography, and he can solve a Rubik’s cube in three days flat. He has a BS in biomedical engineering from the University of Hartford and is currently pursuing his master’s. He resides in Torrington, Connecticut.
Monica Sweeney loves all the things related to Spain and Chaucer and has yet to say no a mini powdered doughnut. She graduated with honors in English from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and lives in Needham, Massachusetts.
Becky Thomas enjoys crocheting, cross-stitch, and playing video games. She lives with her husband, Patrick, and their cats, Leo and Leia, in Burlington, Massachusetts.
Thanks to Skyhorse Publishing for the book.
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