King of Shadows by Susan Cooper Date of Publication: 1999 ISBN: 068984445X Number of Pages: 186

REQUIRED READING ABILITY: Low
GENRES: Historical Fiction, Adventure
THEMES: Appearance versus Reality, Family, Coming of Age, Responsibility, Isolation

SUMMARY:
Nat is a young actor from the States, travelling with his acting troupe to perform in the recreated Globe Theatre in London, England. Soon after he arrives, a mysterious time travel experience occurs, and he finds himself in the real Globe, with the actual actors from the period, and Will Shakespeare himself! As he and Shakespeare get to know each other through the day-to-day trials and tribulations of the company, they start to form a father-son bond. Nat reminds Will of his dead son, Hamnet, and Nat’s recent loss of his father makes him appreciate Will. This relationship eventually makes Nat realize that he must reconcile with his own situation back home. He manages to switch back with the original Nat Field, who has been in our time being treated for the Plague (thereby allowing Shakespeare to avoid being infected and possibly killed by the disease). As he alters the time travel mix-up, Nat ends up stepping into the role he was born to play.

WHO WOULD LOVE THIS BOOK? A kid who...

• likes acting and drama
• is interested in Shakespeare
• has a messed up family life, or an unhappy one
• likes historical fiction
• likes time travel stories
  

WHAT ELSE?
This book is an ABA Pick of the Lists book and also earned the Publishers Weekly Best Book of 1999. There’s also an audio version of the book.

Be aware that though it is clearly secondary in the plot, the character of Nat has a deceased mother and a father who recently committed suicide. His unhappy home life makes for a good discussion topic and a cathartic experience for some readers, but may prove upsetting to others.

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