William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

Shakespearean retellings for children have a distinguished history, taking us at least as far back as the Lambs. This Coville and Nolan version, in full colour picture book format, is, however, given more sumptuous presentation than most of its predecessors, resulting in a volume which is quite attractive to look at and handle. Inevitably - in spite of the claims of the blurb - a considerable quantity of the 'magic and humour' of the original has to be sacrificed: the antics of Quince and Co. undergo a marked abridgement and Nolan's artwork misses out on the dark underside of the text. There is - for the adult reader - 'a note from the author' which raises numerous questions about the need for, and function of, a volume such as this. It is, we are informed, not a substitute for the original but 'a gateway to the greater enjoyment of it'. There will be no dispute about the first of these claims; the second remains tantalisingly unproven - and unprovable?