Shakespeare's First Folio: All The Plays

"Feast your eyeballs on this bedazzling book and start your children on a lifelong love of Shakespeare." The Times

“It’s Shakespeare for children – but in a radical new form … the book is illustrated by Emily Sutton, who has supplied more than 150 ingeniously detailed watercolour drawings … it’s a rare delight to find a children’s edition that leaves Shakespeare’s language intact.” The Daily Telegraph, 5 stars

"What a lovely treasure! A wonderful introduction to Shakespeare's timeless plays." Greg Jenner, You're Dead to Me

The first-ever illustrated children's edition of William Shakespeare's First Folio, published to celebrate its 400th anniversary – a sumptuous gift book to treasure for ever.

Published in association with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Shakespeare's Plays is the first-ever illustrated children's edition of the First Folio, one of the greatest books ever published which celebrates its 400th anniversary in 2023. The sumptuously illustrated book, with luminous and detailed artwork by Emily Sutton, includes all 36 plays in the original volume, in the same order. The plays preserve Shakespeare's original dramatic language, but have been skillfully abridged by Dr Anjna Chouhan so they can be performed by a minimum of eight children in under twenty minutes. The perfect accessible introduction to Shakespeare in his own words for a child, this is a very special gift book that will be returned to time and time again.

"What a lovely treasure! A wonderful introduction to Shakespeare's timeless plays." Greg Jenner, You're Dead to Me

The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust is the independent charity that cares for the world’s greatest Shakespeare heritage sites in Stratford-upon-Avon, and promotes the enjoyment and understanding of his works, life and times all over the world.

Dr Anjna Chouhan was an in-house scholar at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust for eleven years, where she developed an approach to adapting Shakespeare for younger audiences. Amongst other publications, Anjna edited the volume on Henry Irving for the Lives of Shakespearian Actors series, was lead Shakespearian for the BBC ShakespeareMe project, has co-hosted the podcast Shakespeare Alive, and produces and hosts her own podcast, Shakespeare’s Pants.

Emily Sutton is an artist and illustrator based in York, England. She has worked on numerous picture books, including The Christmas Eve Tree by Delia Huddy, as well as Tiny, Lots, Many and Grow by author Nicola Davies, and The Tale of the Castle Mice by Michael Bond. Emily finds endless inspiration for her paintings from spending time in nature accompanied by her dog muse Mouse and her nieces Penny and Sadie. Visit her website

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