 2008-07-07 - Greatness
shakespeare has done it again... and thanks to amazon i was allowed to fully enjoy this great masterpiece
2008-04-19 - If you want to read Shakespeare its has to be The new folger Library
If you ever thought about reading Shakespeare but was turned off or intimidated by the old english, not so with the new folger editions. Your basically reading the play on all the right sided pages , with the left pages reserved for all the definitions and explanations of the sayings and words that might be dificult to understand. This makes it very easy and enjoyable to read.
 2008-01-02 - Review
Hamlet is a book written by William Shakespeare. The book is very thrilling; it keeps you on your feet throughout the read. In the beginning it starts out with a family murder then it moves through incest then a big bang at the end as every major character is killed. This book goes to show that treason gets you know where.
 2007-10-18 - Utter Tripe
What kind of idiot writes this tripe? This is allegedly a "Play" by some long-dead "Master".
Well, let me tell, you: it's boring and derivative. It's about this Prince who doesn't get his father's throne, and feels all depressed about it for a while, and fights back against his uncle (who took the throne and married the prince's mother), to show everyone that it was actually the uncle who killed his father the king.
Excuse me? Haven't we heard this before?
Yep: Disney's "The Lion King".
This is "The Lion King" dressed up in period clothes. Instead of "Simba", we've got "Hamlet". Instead of "Scar", we've got "Claudius". Instead of "Nala", we've got "Ophelia".
And it's in "Denmark", instead of the African Plains. Denmark? Is that even a real country anymore? Anyways, it's called Europe, now; That's a part of London.
And don't get me started on the language this writer used! It's all like it's from the Bible and stuff. Get rid of that, and use real words: Take a lesson from someone like Stephen King.
Don't waste your time with this; watch "The Lion King", and you'll get it. And while you're at it, there's a bridge in Brooklyn I'm selling.
 2007-09-22 - Methinks it is like a weasel.
I'm going to take some hits for this (by rabid Shakespeare fans mostly), but this play, whether read in a straightforward manner, or analyzed to the hilt, is just somewhat better than mediocre.
Most folks who would read this work know that Shakespeare's plays are broken down, at the top, into two groups: tragedies and comedies. Hamlet is a tragedy -- the limited humor that one finds herein is pretty darn subtle, (e.g., the comment about Englishmen all being mad). I do not criticise "Hamlet" for that actuality, in fact, I prefer the tragedies. However, the play, as plays go, is simply just so-so. I think folks get 'caught up' in the fact that this is SHAKESPEARE, and therefore, they are SUPPOSED to like it if they have an ounce of culture.
For people who wish to delve into ecclectic classic works (of all genres), "Hamlet" is difficult to read (unless you're a genius, you sort of have to stumble along and concentrate on what has been said), due mostly to the archaic language. I think, to be a fan of Shakespeare, one must assidiously STUDY Shakespeare... and for those folks who just want 'to read some Shakespeare,' I think that "Julius Caesar" is a much better place to begin.
The story about Hamlet is essentially a good tale, if a bit drawn out, but some of the details are what make it most interesting. Also, I like any story where madness is a facet of the discussion (I LOVED "The Brothers Karamazov," Dostoyevsky!)
But to assert that this work is a wonderful read just because it's Shakespeare, is why I say: Methinks it is [just a bit] like a weasel.
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