The Complete Sonnets of William Shakespeare

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Roscoe Lee Browne, Christopher Cazenove, Vanessa Redgrave, David Warner, Elliott Gould, Samantha Eggar, Robert Foxworth, Joel Grey, Juliet Mills, Roger Rees

Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

For sustained dramatic intrigue and sophistication of plot, William Shakespeare's sonnets are at least the equal of his greatest plays. Throughout the centuries since their first publication in 1609, critics, psychologists and curiosity-seekers alike have pondered the nature of the poet's relationships with the mysterious young man, "Mr. W.H.", and the "ill-coloured" Dark lady. With or without the mystery, with or without the epic greatness of their author's other works, the sonnets would still have their place among the greatest poems ever written. Compelling, subtle, intellectually rigorous yet taut with intense emotion, each poem survives reading, study and vibrant interpretation from one generation to the next. On this recording, great contemporary actors present the entire sequence, delivering the full range and power of virtuosity, emotional power and bristling intelligence that made Shakespeare great.

Public Domain (P)2009 Phoenix

Fits infinity in a couplet

I really haven't read Shakespeare's sonnets in any consistent way since high school (where I read less than twenty and memorized two). It was fascinating to read all 154 from first to last as a whole connected work. One really gets a sense that English is a tool which almost all of us use, many often play with, but only Shakespeare owned. The Bard could bend a word, fit infinity in a couplet and drop the whole universe on a period.

excellent cast

Shakespeare is to be heard rather than read.. Very enjoyable. Now back to Proust...

Good but not great

An acceptable hodgepodge, uneven audio, some shockingly dull American accents amid fine British ones. The best is saved for the last, with several well-known sonnets after many less impressive choices.

It is nice

It is nice. The multiple readers give it variety. I liked it a lot more than the John Gielgud reading. A downside to this collection is that the volume is all over the place from reader to reader.

Nice cast and read with respect.

Shakespeare is meant to be heard not read if you truly want to learn how he thought.

This is Wonderful!

Where does The Complete Sonnets of William Shakespeare rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I really like it and it's very different from our normal English so I would rated very high as above.

Who was your favorite character and why?

None!

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

"Full collection of The Shakespeare's Sonnets."

Any additional comments?

Maybe a little bit of background music inside because only talking and talking for hours isn't very interesting.

Excellent reading from world-class actors!

Excellent reading from world-class actors, many of whom you'll know from stage and screen. I was particularly struck by Vanessa Redgrave, and Elliot Goldenthal; but they're all amazing!

Simply delightful

Every sonet is read clearly and with feeling. All the readers are perfect. A lovely book to listen too. To relax too. To appreciate.