Review: The Pocket William Shakespeare by Gemini

As a Shakespeare fan who has read *almost* all of his works and took a Uni class dedicated to him – I thought solving these puzzles was fun! Granted, I believe a physical copy of this book would have been easier to use than a digital copy (but that’s just preference).

Overall, I thought it was a cute little activity book and would be a great gift for someone who is a fan of Shakespeare.

If you aren’t too familiar with his works, the activities might be a bit hard or confusing because while it gives some background info at the beginning, it doesn’t dive into the specifics — you need a good-level of Shakespeare knowledge to successfully complete the harder puzzles.

Book Review: The Pocket William Shakespeare by Gemini

Rating: 4 Stars

As a self-proclaimed Shakespeare enthusiast, I was thrilled to dive into The Pocket William Shakespeare by Gemini. This delightful little tome is an absolute treasure, designed to both test and refresh one’s memory of the Bard’s iconic works.

The book is cleverly structured around the plays of Shakespeare, featuring a variety of quizzes and puzzles that cater to fans at all levels. Each crossword puzzle focuses on a specific play, with clues drawn directly from memorable quotations. It’s like a stroll down memory lane, revisiting those beloved lines that have become part of our literary DNA. There are also engaging fill-in-the-blank quizzes, name games revolving around characters, and themed word searches that cover everything from heroes and heroines to the whimsical fools and fairies Shakespeare so expertly crafted.

What I found particularly charming about this book is how it invites readers to engage with Shakespeare's works in a playful way. As Jane Austen suggested, Shakespeare is part of our cultural fabric, and The Pocket William Shakespeare allows us to reconnect with his genius in a fun format. Whether you’re a casual reader or a seasoned scholar, there’s something here to challenge and amuse you.

I must say, this book would make a fantastic gift for anyone who shares a passion for Shakespeare. It's filled with enjoyable puzzles that not only entertain but also deepen your understanding of the plays. Overall, I’d give it a solid four stars. It's an ingenious blend of fun and learning that every Shakespeare lover should have in their collection!

⚠️This review was written based on personal opinions and experiences with the book. Individual preferences may vary⚠️

This book will be enjoyed by those who like word games. It is a bonus that there are Shakespeare themes for these puzzles.

Solvers jump right in. The first puzzle invites the reader to match quotes with the correct flowers. To mention a common one…there’s (BLANK) for remembrance. Go on to enjoy grid puzzles, crosswords, wordsearches, and more. Some of these puzzles do require some Shakespearean knowledge, as in a puzzle that looks at characters’ occupations or another in which the solver provides the name of the father of characters.

Like solving puzzles? Want to test your knowledge of Shakespeare? If yes, have some fun with this title.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gemini Books Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Pocket William Shakespeare.

I thought this would contain humorous CliffNotes versions of Shakespeare's greatest works and puzzles to enjoy after each recap but this went straight into the puzzles right away.

There's no context or exposition or background of the plays the puzzles are pulling from.

This would be ideal for die-hard Shakespeare fan who knows all there is to know about the playwright and his creative works.

I like Shakespeare but I'm no stan.

Ok so this wasn’t entirely what I was expecting after reading and enjoying some biographic stories from Gemini in the past. I think this would be a fun wee book for someone who already knows a bit about shakesphere so they can do the quizzes and puzzles but I didn’t learn much.
Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review.

As an English teacher I absolutely loved this! I'll make sure my school buys some copies of this as I believe quizzes are great for motivation and "easy" engagement.

4.5 rating - You don't have to be a William Shakespeare fan to enjoy this activity book! I'm glad they give some background information in the beginning but then it jumps right in to the fun stuff. They're not all easy activities which I appreciate. I give it 4.5 because it would definitely be easier to do the activities with a physical book but it was still enjoyable on tablet!