The condition of this used book is excellent! I love the Signet Classics for Shakespeare's historical fictions.
In Part One of Shakespeare's "Henry IV," the titular king tries to defend his throne from a rebel army led by the hotheaded Hotspur, who has a long list of grievances about the king's treatment of his family, the Percys. Hotspur has allied himself with several principal figures including his uncle the Earl of Worcester, his brother-in-law Mortimer the Earl of March, Lord Douglas the Scot, and Owen Glendower, a Welsh chieftain with a vivid mystical imagination -- he is so egotistical that he insists an earthquake that occurred the day of his birth was a divine proclamation of his importance -- and a desire to usurp all of Wales from the king.
Oh the Harrys...Oh the feels...
Very decent introduction by Maynard Mack (who is listed as the author) which suggests that readers "come to Richard IV Part One from Richard II which I am more or less doing. I have been reading the histories not really in order but one close on the next and digging into the tribulations of Bolingbroke right after his crowning and the death of Richard was a great way to approach it.
I feel absolutely terrible saying this, but I found this quite dull. The more histories that I read, the more I'm beginning to realize that I miss the drama of his Tragedies or the playful language of his Comedies.
This play is the reason my cat is named Hal, if that tells you anything. Besides that I'm a huge nerd, I mean.
Not my favourite of Shakespeare's plays, perhaps, but still one worth the reading. Shakespeare's wit and talent with language have never been more finely displayed than in this text.
A prince gone wild
22 February 2013
Thank God for Youtube. As I have said before reading a Shakespearian play that I have not seen on either stage or screen can be a difficult task at best.
