We have all been reading about William Shakespeare since our childhood. Shakespeare is among the best authors of all time. He used to write books on comedies, tragedies, and histories. Furthermore, Shakespeare wrote most of his books between 1589 and 1613. Some of his popular books are “Romeo and Juliet,” “Richard III,” “Much Ado About Nothing,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and more. But, there are more William Shakespeare books that you may like to read; let’s take a look at them.
20 Best William Shakespeare Books
Here, we will check out some of the best William Shakespeare books that every true reader should read.
1. Hamlet
2. Macbeth
3. Romeo and Juliet
4. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
5. Othello
6. Much Ado About Nothing
7. King Lear
8. Twelfth Night
9. The Tempest
10. The Merchant of Venice
11. Julius Caesar
12. The Taming of the Shrew
13. As You Like It
14. Shakespeare’s Sonnets
15. Richard III
16. Antony and Cleopatra
17. Henry V
18. The Winter’s Tale
19. Titus Andronicus
20. The Comedy of Errors
1. Hamlet
Hamlet is a book written by William Shakespeare between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare’s longest and most popular play. Hamlet, Claudius, Gertrude, Polonius, Ophelia, Laertes, and Horatio are the major characters. In this play, Hamlet takes revenge on Claudius, his uncle who killed his father. On the other hand, Hamlet kills Polonius, his lover’s father. Later, his lover, Ophelia dies of trauma. Horatio is Ophelia’s brother who takes revenge for his father and sister’s deaths on Hamlet.
2. Macbeth
Macbeth is a book written by William Shakespeare book based on the tragedy genre. He published the book in 1623. The characters are Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Banquo, Macduff, King Duncan, and Malcolm. Three witches mislead Macbeth to become a new king. Later, his wife, Lady Macbeth also misleads him to kill his father. However, later she dies and Macbeth, also kills Macduff’s family, who was a Scottish nobleman. In the end, Macduff takes revenge and kills Macbeth, and the elder son of King Duncan, Malcolm, becomes a new king.
3. Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is one of the best William Shakespeare books. The book was written in the early days of Shakespeare’s writing career. Moreover, he wrote a love story of two Italian youths, Romeo and Juliet. The play’s characters are Romeo, Juliet, Bangolio, Mercutio, Tybalt, Friar Laurance, Lord Montagues, Lady Montagues, and more. Romeo belongs to the Montagues family, whereas Juliet belongs to the Capulet family, and both families are enemies.
4. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is among the popular William Shakespeare books. The play’s characters are Lysander, Hermia, Demetrius, Helena, and Robin Goodfellow (puck). At the beginning of the play, Lysander and Demetrius fall for Hermia, but Hermia loves only Lysander. Helena, another girl, falls for Demetrius, but he does not love her back. Robin Goodfellow, a magician falls for Lysander and Demetrius for Helena. However, at the end of the play, he fixes the issue.
5. Othello
Othello is a popular tragedy book written by William Shakespeare. The play’s characters are Brabenzio, Othello, Desdemona, Michael Cassio, Iago, and Emilia. Moreover, Brabenzio is a king who finds a guy to fix his daughter’s marriage but can’t find a suitable guy for her. Desdemona, Brabenzio’s daughter, meets Othello and falls for him. Later, they got married. Michael Cassio is Othello’s good friend, who is now a Luitenent. Iago is jealous of Cassio and makes a plan in which Othello kills his wife. When Cassio clarifies everything, Othello kills himself and dies for Desdemona.
6. Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing is one of the famous William Shakespeare books. The play’s characters are Benedick, Beatrice, Don Pedro, Don John, Claudio, Hero, Leonato, Antonio, Margaret, Borachio, and more. Claudio falls for Hero, and Don Pedro supports him. Benedick and Beatrice fight a lot but later fall for each other. However, Don John, the enemy of Pedro, plans to ruin the marriage by misleading Claudio and Pedro. But in the end, the confusion gets clear and Claudio marries Hero, and Beatrice marries Benedick.
7. King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy book written by William Shakespeare. In this book, Shakespeare explores family, relations, power, and more. Furthermore, the characters are King Lear, Kent, Goneviel, Albany, Regan, Cornwall, Cordelia, France, and more. King Lear had no son so he distributed his property among her older daughters and gave nothing to the younger. Later, when he wanted to live with his older daughters, they insulted him. However, he stays with the younger daughter and gets a lesson.
Bottom Line
William Shakespeare is among the famous writers who wrote many popular books, such as King Lear, Othello, Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and more. Popular William Shakespeare books are written in tragedy and comedy genres. Since our childhood, we have read about his stories, and they are miraculous. The storyline, twists and everything is on point.