Garfield wrote his first book, the pirate novel Jack Holborn, for adult readers but a Constable & Co. In 1964, the couple adopted a baby girl, called Jane after Jane Austen, a favourite writer of both parents. After the war Garfield worked as a biochemical laboratory technician at the Whittington Hospital in Islington, writing in his spare time until the 1960s, when he was successful enough to write full-time. She would also greatly influence Garfield's writing, giving him suggestions for his writing, including the original idea for Smith. While posted in Belgium he met Vivien Alcock, then an ambulance driver, who would go on to become his second wife (in 1948) and a well-known children's author. For his service in the war he joined the Royal Army Medical Corps. He married Lena Leah Davies in April, 1941, at Golders Green Synagogue but they separated after only a few months. Garfield attended Brighton Grammar School (1932-1938) and went on to study art at Regent Street Polytechnic, but his studies were interrupted first by lack of funds for fees, then by the outbreak of World War II.

He wrote more than thirty books and scripted Shakespeare: The Animated Tales for television. He is best known for children's historical novels, though he also wrote for adults. 'About this title' may belong to another edition of this title.Leon Garfield FRSL (14 July 1921 – 2 June 1996) was a British writer of fiction. Margolis, Town and Country Day School, Kensington, Md.Ĭopyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. While Garfield's style is more accessible to modern readers and covers the plays more completely than the evasive Victorianisms of the Lambs, he must take a back seat when compared with the lucid straightforward prose in Chute's book. Garfield covers only 12 of the best-known plays, while the Lambs tell 20 tales and Chute leads the pack with 36.

However, Garfield's visual descriptions are so specific and so lavish his line interpretations so absolute that he almost guarantees that any given production will seem inadequate after such a buildup! Libraries that have Lamb's Tales from Shakespeare (Macmillan, 1963 o.p.) or Chute's Stories from Shakespeare (World, 1956 o.p.) probably don't need to add this luxury item.

The storytelling is unevenGarfield is able to evoke the heartbreak of King Lear but fails to convey the crazy humor of Twelfth Night but it is generally competent enough. Foreman's intense watercolors and lively ink-wash illustrations go far to help create the moods of the stories. From the deep orange endpapers, through generous margins and clear print, to the multitude of evocative illustrations, the volume is a delight. Grade 5 Up The value of this book will depend upon the intended use.

Leon garfield shakespeare