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Collins Complete Works Of Shakespeare: The Alexander Text Paperback – 23 June 2006

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Edition: New Alexander Text edition

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The Complete Works of Shakespeare contains the recognized canon of the bard's plays, and his sonnets and poems. The texts were edited by the late Professor Peter Alexander, making it one of the most authoritative editions, recognized the world over for its clarity and scholarship.

Described in the Guardian on its first publication in 1951 as ‘a symbol in the history of our national culture', the Collins edition of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare, edited by the late Professor Peter Alexander, has long been established as one of the most authoritative editions of Shakespeare's works, and was chosen by the BBC as the basis for its televised cycle of the plays.

The book starts with two specially written articles – a biography of Shakespeare by Germaine Greer and a wide-ranging introduction to Shakespeare theatre by the late Anthony Burgess. Each play is also introduced by academics from Glasgow University, where Professor Alexander undertook his editing.

New to this edition is an internet resources section, providing details of the most useful Shakespeare websites. In addition, the invaluable glossary of over 2,500 entries explaining the meaning of obsolete words and phrases (complete with line references) has been expanded and redesigned to make it much easier to use.

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ISBN-10

0007208316
ISBN-13

978-0007208319
Edition

New Alexander Text edition
Publisher

Collins - GB
Publication date

23 June 2006
Language

English
Dimensions

13.1 x 5.7 x 20.4 cm
Print length

1488 pages
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Review

‘A symbol in the history of our national culture’
Guardian

‘The most esteemed and influential British edition of the 20th century’
Gary Taylor, General Editor, Oxford Complete Shakespeare

‘I am most impressed with the layout and content of this book, especially the informative commentaries on each of the plays. It is also useful to have a reference section at the rear of the book’
Michael Guest on amazon.co.uk

About the Author

William Shakespeare is regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and was an eminent dramatist. His plays are perenially adapted and re-interpreted within different contexts. There is much mystery and a timeless fascination around Shakespeare's as a person and as a writer.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Collins - GB; New Alexander Text edition (23 June 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 1488 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0007208316
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0007208319
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 13.1 x 5.7 x 20.4 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 408,898 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 123 in Drama & Play Anthologies
- 126 in Theatre Textbooks
- 224 in Film & Television Textbooks

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William Shakespeare

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William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's preeminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". His surviving works, including some collaborations, consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire and was baptised on 26 April 1564. Thought to have been educated at the local grammar school, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he went on to have three children, at the age of eighteen, before moving to London to work in the theatre. Two erotic poems, Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece were published in 1593 and 1594 and records of his plays begin to appear in 1594 for Richard III and the three parts of Henry VI. Shakespeare's tragic period lasted from around 1600 to 1608, during which period he wrote plays including Hamlet and Othello. The first editions of the sonnets were published in 1609 but evidence suggests that Shakespeare had been writing them for years for a private readership.

Shakespeare spent the last five years of his life in Stratford, by now a wealthy man. He died on 23 April 1616 and was buried in Holy Trinity Church in Stratford. The first collected edition of his works was published in 1623.

(The portrait details: The Chandos portrait, artist and authenticity unconfirmed. NPG1, © National Portrait Gallery, London)

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Top review from Australia

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Linda Lee

Light but not lite - a great way to have the complete works at your fingertips when travelling.

Reviewed in Australia on 21 June 2014

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I have this edition in hardcopy. I bought it when I studied Shakespeare's plays at university. I was so happy to see it available on Kindle. I needed to reread some plays I was going to see while I was travelling and it was a real joy to read them while I was hurtling to my various destinations. Ariel would have been very proud of me!

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Pelihat

Kindle Fire on fire!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 August 2021

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My son just bought me a Kindle Fire 7 after I had been using the very first version of Amazon Kindle for some time, with a very big library of complete works. The addition of the Bard to them at such a ridiculously low price was something I should have done long before now.

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Ottimo

Reviewed in Italy on 16 February 2020

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Il libro nonostante fosse usato è arrivato in condizioni perfette, praticamente nuovo! L'opera completa di Shakespeare è ottima per ogni amante della letteratura inglese.

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A must have Literature book.

Reviewed in India on 22 September 2019

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I like the qualitative binding of Collins the most. The page quality of the book is very good and aesthetic to the eyes. However, texts are tiny but if this book were published in normal texts size, the book would come definitely in several volumes. Texts are not too tiny to read. All the best!

One person found this helpful

APL

Great Book, Excellent Condition, Delivered Much Quicker That Estimated

Reviewed in the United States on 13 March 2017

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The Complete Works of William Shakespeare: The Edition of the Shakespeare Head Press

This review is for the Shakespeare Head Press Edition (this specific book republished by Barnes and Noble). A copy of this edition was the first volume of Shakespeare I ever owned. Even though that first book is no longer in my possession, this edition is still one of my favorites.

Delivery was fast, and the book arrived in absolutely great condition.
A volume I will treasure. Thank you!

Chels

A Great Way to Get All of Shakespeare's Works, Poems AND Plays!

Reviewed in Canada on 11 January 2013

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Shakespeare is essential. At some point, you will encounter it. It has shaped the English language. It has embellished our vocabulary. This playwright and poet has a long portfolio, so gathering all of his works is quite a feat. The solution? This collectiong. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare is not only comprehensive, but surprisingly lightweight. Through a design that minimizes the number of pages, while refusing to sacrifice quality, this collectiong can easily be taken with you without breaking your back. It is also meant for those familiar with the language, so there are no wordy glossaries or appendices explaining the vocabulary. My only complaint? It's not hardcover, so overuse might wear out the bind.

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Collins Complete Works Of Shakespeare: The Alexander Text Paperback – 23 June 2006

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