Complete Shakespeare Miniature Library

The Miniature Library series is an absolute joy; besides being an attractive addition to one's library or lounge shelf, it is of utmost convenience for those travelers who prefer a book-in-hand as opposed to digital reading - I am definitely the former! A further convenience is the little space it takes in your bag. Men can even just put an individual book in your back pocket! The only negative, for those with weaker eyesight, is the size of print. For this particular Mini version I think a clearer print font would be preferable

I love the quality of the workmanship on the case as well as the books itself. I’ve always been a fan of Shakespeare’s work. So it’s a pleasure having a complete miniature library.

The lack of promotion and only one static image worried me about the purchase, couple with the fact it had a steep price drop from 50$ to like 30$, I was afraid this was going to be subpar. But honestly I am pleasantly surprised. They aren't kidding when they say miniature, each volume is smaller than my hand. Despite their tiny stature I they're made with decent quality. The binding is a nice hardcover, and the books aren't stiff to open. Overall I'm really pleased with it

Such a cute way to carry around Shakespeare. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of these books. For me, it was totally worth it.

Essentially, this is a low quality version of a few previously published sets called ‘The Shakespeare Library’ by Robert Frederick (RF) and Bath Classics (BC) or ‘The Miniature Shakespeare Library’ by Barnes & Noble (BN). It utilizes the same textual source and retains a similar portable size. (For what it’s worth, the previous two editions split the plays up into 10 volumes; they are here split into 12.) Two major issues plague this Canterbury Classics (CC) edition: cheaper binding and poorer scans. Whereas the endpapers attaching the hard covers to their bound texts were thick and strong in the earlier editions, CC has used thin and weak paper. I’ve carried around copies of my RF set for years and they’re still fine—but when I received my CC copy, a few of the volumes already had their covers unattached from the pages! Essentially, the CC books just look cute on a shelf. As I mentioned above, this CC edition also uses the same text as the earlier sets, an Oxford edition edited by W. J. Craig. The previous editions were not perfect: some of the printing was a bit faint, which should’ve been an easy fix for CC. Indeed, CC has upped the contrast in their printing, for the most part making their text pop from the page. However, in at least a couple of the volumes I had (most noticeable in the ‘Henry VI’ plays), the contrast had not been correctly calibrated, leaving the black print set on a dull gray background instead of white, making it even more difficult to read than the worst pages of the earlier editions! The CC edition has also significantly reduced the size of their text while leaving wider margins, making me wonder why they left all that empty space—space which could’ve been used to make their edition easier on the eyes... Overall, I can’t imagine the Canterbury Classics copies could sustain any of the wear or tear that portable editions should require, and they’re certainly not cheap enough to be disposable. If you’re willing to fork out $55 on this set, your money would be better spent on the out of print (but more durable and readable) editions put out by Robert Frederick, Bath Classics, or Barnes & Noble.

I absolutely recommend this set, it’s beautiful, and sturdy. Small books, small print.

Makes a wonderful gift, especially for graduation.

I returned this purchase.

Ok, too Small

I was searching for a transportable Shakespeare collection. Most complete collection weight around 3 kg and are thus not particularly suited for the bus or train or even for reading on the couch. This collection contains all plays in several small books. The book size is smaller than a regular book, but still ok. The font is rather difficult to read and the books contain only the plays. No extra content, such as introductions to plays or a glossary, is provided. One does not get the impression that this collection was made with great care. In hindsight the price should have been an indicator. Thus, I cannot recommend this collection. For reading on the go I much prefer the Macmillan Collector's Library editions. Unfortunately, their collection is incomplete.

Very good book collection. The size and readability are good.

Lovely mini hardback versions of the play. Bought as a gift and it was well received! A lovely present for Shakespeare fans.

Shakespeare is Shakespeare. But the seller really effed up this wonderfully packaged library. I am attaching the broken volumes in it, just as I received them. Now I am on to buy some glue and repair these.