Much Ado About Shakespeare: Modern Adaptations & Retellings

By Carrie McBride, Communications
April 23, 2020
portrait of Shakespeare

NYPL Digital Collections, Image ID: TH-50306

Updated 4/10/2023

April 23rd is William Shakespeare's birthday (in 1564, and, likely his death date as well) so it's a fitting day to celebrate his contributions to literature and culture. While we absolutely recommend reading Shakespeare's work anytime (his plays are available on our SimplyE app), today we're also recommending you try one of the many modern retellings of his work. These authors take the central themes that Shakespeare explored and give them new settings, characters, and interpretations.

Many of the titles below are part of the Hogarth Shakespeare project which publishes adapations of his works by bestselling authors. We've also included some Young Adult titles which are a perfect entrée to the world of Shakespeare if you're feeling intimidated. 

All of these titles are available from the Library in e-book format and most are in our free reader app SimplyE.

Summaries provided via NYPL’s catalog, which draws from multiple sources. Click through to each book’s title for more.