Description
Funny, shocking and brilliant- from bestselling author R. A. Spratt, a whip-smart take on Shakespearean moral dilemmas.
Selby hates homework. She would rather watch TV - anything to escape the tedium of school, her parents' bookshop and small-town busy bodies.
So Selby didn't plan to read Hamlet. She certainly never planned to meet him.
This novel transports Selby, and the reader, into the cold and crime-ridden play itself. Here she meets Hamlet - heavy with grief, the young prince is overthinking and over everything. Selby can relate. But unlike Hamlet, Selby isn't afraid of making decisions. In her world, Selby is used to feeling overlooked. But in the bloody, backstabbing world of Shakespeare, Selby's good conscience and quiet courage might just save some lives . . . hopefully before Hamlet stabs one of her classmates.
Review
R.A. Spratt brings us this unique and interesting look into the world of Shakespeare!
Selby is the youngest child in a family of high achievers. Her brother and sister excelled at school, her parents are highly educated and now own the local bookshop. But Selby just coasts along and flies under the radar. She is a bit of a loner, spending hours watching soap operas on TV. She just does not find school appealing at all, and struggles with it - much to the disappointment of her parents, who have always been nothing but encouraging of her. Well, until they find out just how little work she has actually been doing at school anyway!
Enter her new tutor, Dan, the annoying friend of her brother. Dan not only makes her read Hamlet, but even worse he makes her read it out loud. This does not sit well with Selby, but she doesn't have much choice. But here begins the fun, as suddenly they are both transported right into the middle of Shakespeare's play. With no idea how they got there or how they are going to get home, Selby and Dan get caught up in the middle of all the drama and plotting that is playing out right before their very eyes.
Selby and Dan are concerned about what is transpiring, but can they intervene without changing the course of history too much?
Without wanting to give too much away, this is certainly a story that will have you thinking! The Shakespearean themes and language might be a bit overwhelming at times, but as R.A. Spratt says herself at the start of the book, there are words you can skip over, whilst still enjoying the story.
This is a fun and unique take on a classic, and Selby is a great character, and one that many readers will certainly relate to, and you will be hoping that she manages to redeem herself! It will be enjoyedby all secondary students.
Reviewed by Sam
