Going to see 'Shakespeare' and want a quick run-down on the plot? Studying Shakespeare and want to know who's who? Teaching the 'Henrys' and need a handy guide to histories? A Pocket Guide to Shakespeare's Plays gives all this and more: --an introduction to Shakespeare and his times --a note on the sources --cast lists --a synopsis for each play --main character descriptions --an essay on 38 plays. An essential, concise, and readable guide to all thirty-eight of Shakespeare's plays. A Pocket Guide to Shakespeare's Plays is an invaluable resource for anyone with an interest in the greatest of all English-language playwrights. Equally useful for actors, directors, and students-as well as for anyone planning to see a Shakespearean play-this book offers a great deal of information about Shakespeare in an accessible, succinct format. It looks at Shakespeare and his works from virtually every possible angle, including a section on Shakespeare and his time; a note on his sources; a synopsis of each play; descriptions of the main characters, which take note of the differences between the characters on the page and how they have been portrayed on the stage; and a brief, insightful essay on each work, which helps put the play in the context of Shakespeare's time as well as our own.