Shakespeare's Sonnets, Retold

by James Anthony (Adapter), William Shakespeare, Stephen Fry (Preface)

Rediscover the greatest love poetry ever written

Shall I compare you to a summer’s day?
You’re more delightful, always shining strong;
High winds blow hard on flowering buds in May,
And summer never seems to last that long…


Shakespeare’s sonnets are some of the nation’s favourite lines of verse, but the Elizabethan language can make it difficult to really understand them. Many guides offer to clarify the meaning, but lose the magic of the words by explaining them away.

James Anthony has done something boldly different.

He has rewritten the whole series of poems as sonnets using modern language, while retaining the rhythm and rhyme patterns that gives them such power. In doing so he breathes new life into the original poems and opens them up for a modern readership, demystifying Shakespeare’s eternal poetry with provocative new translations and delightful new lines.

Presented as a beautiful, designed gift book with the original sonnets facing their new translations, this is a stunning collection of beautiful love poems, made new.

Genres: Poetry, Classics, Shakespeare, Audiobook, Romance, Retellings, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published November 13, 2018

About the author

James Anthony is an award-winning, multi-genre author from London, England. With a keen eye, sharp wit, and poetic irreverence, he retold all 154 of Shakespeare's sonnets in modern verse, published by Penguin Random House in 2018. Described by Stephen Fry as 'a dazzling success,' he continues to retell the Bard's greatest plays in his popular 'Shakespeare Retold' series. When not tackling the Bard, Anthony is an offbeat travel writer, documenting his trips in his 'Slow Road' series, earning him the moniker the English Bill Bryson.

Reviews

[Jonathan O'Neill · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐
Best used as a sort of “parallel-text” modern translation of the Sonnets. I think it is a great idea, akin to ‘No Sweat Shakespeare’ but much more poetic, maintaining the same rhythm and 14-line form as the originals while being, conveniently, in the same book, alongside the originals. Some of the “retold” sonnets are actually quite good and certainly serve their purpose in elucidating some of the occasionally vague or potentially misinterpretable meanings of the sonnets. It’s a double-edged sword though as, in pulling back the veil on some of Shakespeare’s double-entendres and subtle references, it regularly blunts the sonnets’ literary effect by way of over-simplification or vulgarization of points that were hitherto full of charm and wit. In any case, I very much respect James Anthony’s bold undertaking and would recommend this to first time readers of Shakespeare’s sonnets as it’s always nice to be able to clarify some of the murky points.

I listened to the audiobook as I’d already read the sonnets previously but I’d always recommend going Kindle or Physical copy if it’s your first reading. The original sonnets were read by Paapa Essiedu and the “retold” sonnets by Stephen Fry. I actually preferred Paapa’s reading though he did have the distinct advantage of reading Shakespeare’s originals! Recommended :)

[Anisha Inkspill · Rating 4 out of 5]

For years I’ve dreaded reading Shakespeare’s sonnets, that are short and (from my point of view) needs a lot of deciphering to get to the heart of it.

So, listening to this was a helpful, it covers all of Shakespeare’s sonnets with an intro by James Anthony (the author of this book) and Stephen Fry. It also made the sonnets less daunting to understand, whereby the third listen I was enjoying it so much that at times I was laughing. This was because the audiobook was easy to follow; Paapa Essiedu reads a sonnet originally written by Shakespeare, then Stephen Fry reads the same sonnet with James Anthony’s modern take on it. This took away the work I would have needed to do to understand that sonnet, where now I could just enjoy them.

I also liked how James Anthony (for example) with sonnet 25 resets the sonnet from Shakespeare’s world of kings to today’s world of celebrity. This revision helped me to unearth the finer meanings of a sonner that I would have not otherwise grasped. The modern retell also reveals how the main themes are love, sex and lust (accompanied with all it’s aspects that range from devotion to jealousy to betrayal) where sometimes the descriptions are blunt and very vivid.

This is another book I came by chance on Libby’s search engines, again I feel lucky to find it as helps me further to understand the works that were written in these times.

[Marc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shakespeare's Sonnets, Retold: Classic Love Poems with a Modern Twist is a fun project and it's delightful to hear 2 sides (or 2 versions, if that seems more apt) of Shakespeare's full Sonnet cycle. James Anthony has major nerve to attempt to retell each of the 154 Shakespearean sonnets in modern parlance and vernacular.

Not every modern version works half as well, but Anthony's attempt AND demonstrated talents are well worth the reader's (or listener's) time and attention. Anthony's book and Stephen Fry' forward should be quite useful to students who might benefit from the boost in comprehending each sonnet while still adhering to the sonnet's formal structure and meter.

With some bemusement, I noted that some reviewers were a bit appalled at the raucous or saucy language James Anthony uses in his modern version. Really? Let none of us forget how inventive and saucy William Shakespeare was (and still is) considered in his language choice. Let alone how many creative and saucy sexual euphemisms are attributed to Shakespeare?

If listening to the audiobook, Stephen Fry and Paapa Essiedu are excellent narrators of the modern reworkings and the gorgeous originals. 4.5 stars rounded down to 4.

[Susan Liston · Rating 3 out of 5]

What an undertaking, rewriting all of the sonnets in modern English poetry. And in iambic pentameter, no less. And they are very well done. But it worked for me more as a teaching aid than as poetry. The reworkings ranged from pretty highfalutin to pretty vulgar, and none blew me away as something I would like to remember. I mean just look across the page and read the original for that. So over all I feel this was kind of pointless, but at the same time I am filled with admiration for the idea. Although you can read a synopsis of what the sonnet means in plain speech, it does add an additional layer of understanding to see it translated this way. So..kind of a strange book, but an A for effort for sure.

[Cristin Grenier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am an avid fan of Shakespeare and this book is fabulous!! I believe it should be sold as a companion to the sonnets for every student out there. I feel it really gets to the heart of who Shakespeare really was. He was a romantic, but could also be dark and had a wicked sense of humor. I will definitely be purchasing this in hard copy. Thanks for the advanced copy FTR

[Dianna Soule · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still don't love the sonnets but I really enjoyed how approachable the translations made the sonnets and I have a new found appreciation for the craft that went into both the original and the retellings. Lastly, lol, the sonnets aren't about what I thought they were 😂

[Kerrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened via Audible.
Pretty great!

[Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgoues words, I enjoy the translation on the other side. It's very beautiful and I enjoy the work surrounding it. I use these pages to speak during open mic night

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quite interesting for a first time dive into the sonnets of Shakespeare. I don't know if I should feel sorry for him, or if he's just expertly captured the feelings human's have, but in a poetic, romantic way. The modern twist is still very poetic and James Anthony did a wonderful job recreating old English into new, but even with the omission of 'thys and thees' etc, I'm still not quite sure I was able to follow along. I suppose I need more exposure to Shakespeare's works to understand better, so maybe this is better targeted towards intermediate enthusiasts rather than beginners. The final chapter (which should actually be at the front of the book) helpfully explains the way the sonnets work.

[The Irregular Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was quite a bit of fun. I am no Shakespeare scholar, and while I love watching the Bards plays acted out, I've always found reading him to be difficult. I hadn't read more than one of his sonnets (I'll bet you can guess which one, it's the one everyone reads) before taking on this book.

So why read it at all? Two reasons: the first is that I actually spoke with the author prior to the books publication and he is a hilarious guy, fun to chat with, and absolutely passionate about his work. The second reason is, like many people of a literary bent, I do feel twinges of guilt for ignoring classic literature, and this seemed like a good way to tackle Shakespeare's Sonnets.

I'm glad I read this. This is by no means a "Shakespeare for Dummies." James Anthony has brought the language forward a few hundred years, true, but he has managed to maintain layered meanings, puns, innuendo, and beautiful imagery AND keep it in iambic pentameter. Each "retold" sonnet is set beside the original, allowing you to compare and contrast. Perhaps my faborite part about this book is that by reading them together, I find it much easier to parse the content of the original sonnets. By putting the verses in more modern (though not simple) speech, the originals become much more accessible to the average reader.

So, if you love the bard, or feel as though you should be reading more of humanity's great works, this is a great way to take a wade in Elizabethan literary waters. I promise you'll have fun with this book, and come out of it with both a greater appreciation of Shakespeare's writing, and of how freaking difficult it must be to write poetry in this fashion!

[Tracee · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Sonnets 18 to 126 are all poems to a young man (commonly called the Fair Youth) with whom the poet is clearly in love."

"...O, learn to read what silent love hath writ: To hear with eyes belongs to love's fine wit."

"... So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee."

"...My love shall in my verse ever live young. "

"...With Time's injurious hand crushed and o'erworn... Stealing away the treasure of his spring... His beauty shall in these black lines be seen, And they shall live, and he in them still green."

[Ivy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retelling Shakespeare's Sonnets is a ridiculously admirable endeavor. James Anthony has made a true splash by retelling our beloved Shakespeare's sonnets. Students and those interested in understanding Shakespeare better now have an excellent guide to do so with Shakespeare's Sonnets, Retold. The side-by-side comparison makes it easy to understand line after line. The retellings are not haughty or too watered down, making them perfectly apt for readers.

[Storri Moseley · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5 stars*

[Ron Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

My initial response to the idea of a modern English re-write of Shakespeare’s Sonnets was negative. I had the misfortune last October of reading Maria Headley’s (2020) god-awful modern English re-write of Beowulf – a night of my life I will never get back.

But I opened Anthony’s book and after reading a few of his poems I was hooked. The ideas behind the Sonnets are often complicated and ambiguous. It can be hard to grasp the subtleties, puns, and double entendres. For that matter, experts disagree on some interpretations.

Anthony’s versions stick to the rhythm, rhyme, and structural schemes of Shakespeare’s sonnets but he expresses them in wonderfully colloquial modern English. I really enjoyed them and felt that his poems expanded my appreciation of the originals.

In this edition, though, the original sonnets are printed without explanatory notes. So, I read Anthony’s versions side-by-side with Duncan-Jones’ (2010) Arden edition of the originals, along with their very full annotations. Reading them this way was slower but more enjoyable for me.

[L Rose Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never laughed at Shakespeare's humor and double entendres, or sighed in sympathetic longing at his more wistful work? This book helped make the bard's poems so much more accessible to me than they ever have been!

For each sonnet, I read Shakespeare's original, then Anthony's "translation": which inevitably led me back to the original with new eyes. Some of the sonnets, mostly inaccessible to me without a dictionary and some research, became instantly clear. Even for poems for which the meaning remained relatively transparent 400 years later, Anthony's modern reinterpretation brought vibrancy and life to the original sentiment of the poem--think of it like tweaking an old family recipe with new spices to suit a modern palette. I enjoyed this book so much, that I might have to add it to my collection!

[Gaby Habchy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have three poetry collections next to my nightstand, Les Contemplations: Victor Hugo Livres 1 à 4, Les fables de Jean de La Fontaine: Livre premier and this one.
What is there to say about Shakespeare?

Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed,
The dear repose for limbs with travel tired;
But then begins a journey in my head,
To work my mind, when body's work's expired.

[Matthew Gurteen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was just okay. It's basically an edition of Shakespeare's sonnets with a simplified version attached. It is nothing revolutionary or anything. I can see how it would be helpful for people starting Shakespeare, however. Even I sometimes have trouble understanding the sonnets, but 'Shakespeare's Sonnets, Retold' made them all approachable and entertaining. I would recommend 'Shakespeare's Sonnets, Retold' to any new Shakespeare fan or someone who is looking for a twist on these four-century-year-old poems.

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

At last! English is not my first language and at last I found an adaptation I was able to enjoy. What a wonderful 'translation'. I am now able to appreciate this wonderful writer. His sonnets are full of deep feelings, struggle, frustration and joy.

[Johnny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anthony takes the elegant allusion of Shakespeare and turns it into bawdy gutter language. Not cool!

[Ashanty Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was good. I really like his poems A lot

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like many people (James Anthony included apparently), I did not really "get" Shakespeare when I first read him in middle and high school. In the years since my appreciation for his work has grown, particularly with the opportunities to see his plays performed live (whatever your area's version of Shakespeare on the Common or in the Park is, I highly recommend it). I was aware of the sonnets, but had never read them and perhaps only heard 1 or 2 recited at some point.

They were a fascinating read, made exponentially more accessible thanks to Anthony's modern reformulations of the poems. That said, I only gave the book 3/5 stars for two reasons (both of which may say more about me than the content itself).
First, I struggled to get through the entire book. If I wanted to get through more than 1 or 2 sonnets in a sitting, I really had to make it a focused effort. As a result, it took me months to go cover to cover.
Second, I often found it a struggle to focus on the text I was reading. There is something about poetry (and possibly iambic pentameter in particular) that just frees my mind to wander. I would frequently find myself at the end of a poem, having read every word, but realizing that my mind was focused on something entirely unrelated since the second or third line.

The decreased rating is not a reflection on the quality of the poems themselves, or the retellings, but rather the reading experience I had. For those with a greater passion for poetry, or a deeper interest in Shakespeare, I imagine this would be an easy 5/5 stars, and a great source to return to over the years.

[Joseph Spuckler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shakespeare's Sonnets, Retold is a book that I wished for in high school. Three and a half decades later I think I will take the originals and work through the generations of English language evolution. Rarely is the remake of anything as good as the original, There might be moments of brilliance, and there may be a revival of the original, but a copy remains a copy.

Personal opinions aside, Anthony's side by side arrangement makes for an easy understanding of the original with a new "translation." The difference is not in meaning but delivery. It is like the difference between a classic ballad and a pop song or rap lyric. There is a rough edge that is now very visible that was hidden by the original language. Anthony also does an outstanding job at keeping the sonnet's form intact in his rewrites which would seem to be a challenging task in itself.

It is easy to see how many will like the new versions over the old, but for me, I will stick with the original.
Star rating based on effort

[Suzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Thank you First to Read for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.*

This book does what it sets out to do. The poems are all in modern-day language making them easy to understand. Now, I thought Shakespeare's poems were supposed to be lovey-dovey. But they're not. Actually, the first twenty poems or so (maybe more, I lost count) are about procreation. Spreading your seed. Having kids. It caught me off-guard. They just went on and on about having kids that will be your mini-me's. It was way too much. But after all the procreation poems, there were a few that I actually enjoyed.

The language itself was also a bit weird. Yes, it's modern. But at times it was a little too modern. Maybe I'm just being a bit nit-picky. I did like the way the book was structured though. On one side you have the original poem, as written by Shakespeare. On the next page, you have the new, updated poem by James Anthony. Made it easy to compare the two.

[Andrea James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've only made it two-thirds the way through the book but I'm going to consider it read for now as I'm all sonnetted out for the year I reckon. Nevertheless, it was a novel experience for me reading a modern form of Shakespeare's sonnets side by side with the original. It was especially good when I had Stephen Fry reading aloud for me.

Because the audiobook version was borrowed from the library, I suspect that I now probably won't get through the rest of the print copy myself. Too many books left to read... (or even re-read!).

[Rachel Svendsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lovely side by side comparison of Shakespeare’s sonnets to a modern version of each sonnet. Sometimes I did not quite agree with the authors interpretation, but on the whole found the read enjoyable and enlightening. I can definitely see this book as being a useful tool for teaching Shakespeare and poetry and will probably myself refer to it again the the future.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a review specifically for James Athony's "translation" of Shakespeare's sonnets.
Might just be one of my favourite things ever done.
Practically impossible task, absolutely smashed it, and then some.
I have no idea how this was pulled off; frankly, I don't want to know.
It's magic.

6/5 stars.
...DID I STUTTER? SIX. Deal with it.

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shakespeare sonnets are so beautiful, but not easily absorbed by a concrete thinker like myself. The translation to modern day language by James Anthony, read by Stephen Fry, is very “Shall I compare you to a summer’s day”!!! Very nice to hear the original read in one voice and, immediately, hear the same number read by Fry in modern language.

[Tabby Shiflett · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun coffee table book that you can pick up and read in multiple segments or all in one go. Great for students and Shakespeare aficionados.

Penguin First to Read Galley

[Judi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy Shakespeare... and really enjoyed James Anthony's retelling of all the sonnets. Modern language and concepts blended beautifully with the original sentiments penned over 400 years ago...

[Mills College Library]

822.3 P3an 2018