i really want to actually ENJOY older lit without dnf’ing because i can’t understand what is happening without looking it up all the time. i have worked very hard in english classes to try to understand older lit, but now i just want to understand the stories without needing a guide or spark notes or a professor walking me through it all. it makes me feel a little dumb that it’s so hard for me to understand older lit, but whatever.
for example: shakespeare. i feel like i cannot read anything he wrote without a guide explaining some of the words/phrases and even the overall meaning of some scenes. in fact, i told myself for years that i hate shakespeare bc he’s so difficult for me to understand. in reality, i know he’s a great example of the shoulders of giants we all stand upon as readers and writers
so i am seeking modern retellings of lit written before the 1900s, and i am really open here, but would especially appreciate shakespeare retellings because i want to be able to actually appreciate him. i know there is merit to reading the originals! but i am not in school anymore and i read for fun, not for classes, and i just want to know the same shakespearean stories everyone else seems to love.
also would love modern retellings of classic mythology (e.g. greek— there’s sooo many gods to keep track of and i want to read a story that helps at least a few of the gods/stories stick out in my mind more)
thank you and happy reading ❤️
by orbiter2001
3 Comments
Shakespeare is famously hard to read for all kinds of readers. You’re not alone! I recommend watching Shakespeare plays (plenty of stage play recordings and movies) instead of trying to read them bc the experience is much more fun and easier to understand with visuals. Plus, plays were meant to be performed after all.
Anywho, in terms of books, there’s a **series called Remixed Classics** by various authors that retells classics, including Shakespeare. The Romeo and Juliet one is called **Teach the Torches to Burn**
I also recommend Jane Austen (her work is much more accessible than Shakespeare), but if you’d prefer retellings, Uzma Jalaluddin has good ones:
– Ayesha At Last (Pride and Prejudice retelling)
– Much Ado About Nada (Persuasion retelling)
Here are some I have read:
* The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge. A space opera inspired by the fairy tale The Snow Queen.
* The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie. Loosely based on Hamlet by Shakespeare.
* What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher. Retelling of The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allen Poe
* Black Tom by Victor LaValle. Retelling of The Horror at Red Hook by H. P. Lovecraft
* Hyperion by Dan Simmons. This is inspired by The Canterbury Tales, but do be warned Hyperion is itself a bit of a tough read.
* Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis. Also has a reputation as a tough read. Retelling of the ancient Greek and Roman myth of Cupid and Psyche.
* L’Esprit de L’Escalier by Catherynne M. Valente. This is published free at the Reactor magazine website, but I’m not allowed to post a link here. Retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.
I agree about Shakespeare and tbh I liked reading the wordplay as bits and pieces in school but can’t really understand characters or what’s happening unless it’s in a movie like Much Ado About Nothing with Emma Thompson and the young (and terrible) Keanu Reeves or live performances where the actors all chew the scenery.
Others will have better book suggestions!