Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Julius Caesar
    Julius Caesar
    Julius Caesar
    Ebook58 pages42 minutes

    Julius Caesar

    By Tony Bradman

    3.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Tony Bradman creates a thrilling narrative retelling of Shakespeare's tragedy, Julius Caesar.

    Marcus
    Brutus is a close friend of Julius Caesar, emperor of Rome. So how does he find himself involved in a tangled plot for his
    assassination? The conspirators and the public become embroiled in the
    never-ending political machinations of the great empire, with struggles
    for leadership and power. And once the
    terrible chain of events has been set in motion, is there any way of stopping them, or any way out?

    The Shakespeare Today series captures the magic of Shakespeare's original play and sets it in an accessible and contemporary style.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
    Release dateNov 7, 2011
    ISBN9781408163795
    Julius Caesar
    Author

    Tony Bradman

    Tony Bradman started working life in the music press. In 1979 he joined Parents magazine where he launched their highly successful children’s book pages and, in 1985, the Best Books For Babies Award. He went freelance as a children’s author in 1987 and by 1992 was among the top 20 children’s authors borrowed from UK public libraries.

    Read more from Tony Bradman

    Related to Julius Caesar

    Related ebooks

    Young Adult For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      ‘The Last Assassin’ Breathes Life Into The Events Of Julius Caesar’s Death

      Dec 23, 2020

      By looking through the eyes of a minor player in the assassination, Peter Stothard is able to tell a more intimate tale.

      3 min read

    • Article

      Hook, Line And Sinker

      Oct 18, 2018

      Hook, Line And Sinker
      4 min read

    • Article

      Julius Caesar

      Apr 14, 2018

      Julius Caesar
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Feud That Felled The Roman Empire

      Nov 24, 2022

      IF THERE WAS ONE THING THE Romans did well — aside from sanitation, irrigation and concrete — it was polemic. Cicero composed fourteen fiery Philippics against Mark Antony in the 40s BC, and Catullus jibed at Julius Caesar so profusely in his poems t

      4 min read

    • Article

      Julius Caesar

      Apr 19, 2018

      Julius Caesar
      2 min read

    • Article

      Crassus: The First Tycoon

      Mar 9, 2023

      Crassus: The First Tycoon
      3 min read

    • Article

      Dinner with Martin Amis

      Oct 3, 2019

      Dinner with Martin Amis
      9 min read

    • Article

      Leonard Pitts Jr.: Dear Sen. Booker

      Mar 24, 2022

      Dear New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker: Some days, you are really irritating. That’s because you insist on being a happy warrior in grumpy times. With that eternal, internal and, yes, infernal sunshine of yours, you are to the body politic as that 1-877-Ka

      2 min read

    • Article

      Classical Corner

      Aug 12, 2021

      Classical Corner
      4 min read

    • Article

      Fredericksburg’s Wounded Warriors

      Jul 11, 2023

      Fredericksburg’s Wounded Warriors
      6 min read

    • Article

      Money

      Mar 31, 2024

      Money
      11 min read

    • Article

      Letters

      Mar 4, 2019

      In the opening paragraph of “Black Lives and the Boston Massacre” (Winter 2019), Farah Peterson characterizes Crispus Attucks as an unarmed black man, shot and killed by men in uniform who “got away with it.” This bald statement seriously distorts or

      7 min read

    • Article

      Churchill the Dramatist

      Nov 5, 2020

      Churchill the Dramatist
      9 min read

    • Article

      Nick Laird

      Dec 15, 2017

      I was trying to write like an adult.I had children.I was at the end of something. As I waited at my table by the window for the coffee,I saw that the sirocco had depositeda scrim of dust on the sill overnight,and it was the dark red of powdered blood

      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Julius Caesar

    3.5/5

    2,176 ratings35 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      I liked this one. There is some good banter at the beginning, the speeches over Caesar’s body are wonderful, and the scenes set at the battle of Philippi felt appropriately hopeful or despondent. Caesar is a bit of a non-entity, though, and I’d have wanted a little more friction between Mark Antony and Octavian Caesar. But a very enjoyable play on the whole.
    • 3/5
      1599, meest klassieke tragedie, bron is Plutarchus; perfecte tekst (bijna helemaal rijm), later verketterd als schooltekstBrutus is de hoofdrolspeler, maar Caesar beheerst wel de handeling. Brutus is een idealist die ten onder gaat door een gebrek aan praktisch doorzicht; het tegendeel is Cassius, maar toch meer medevoelen met hem; Antonius is de gehaaide opportunist, demagoog. Brutus’ motieven: II,1 (p 820)Moord III,1Verheven pathetiek van Marcus Antonius na de moord, p 826, 827 (maar wel vals)Redevoeringen bij begrafenis III,2 vormen het hoogtepunt, vooral die van Antonius (p 828-29): opruiend door details over de dood van Caesar en een verwijzing naar zijn testament, tegelijk vriendelijk ten aanzien van de samenzweerders.
    • 4/5
      Good story.
    • 4/5
      In the book Julius Caesar, a group of conspirators lead by a man named Brutus plot to kill Julius Caesar. After succeeding in killing him, Brutus sees Julius Caesar's ghost who promises to see him in Philippi. On a battlefield in Philippi, Brutus fights with Cassius's army. Cassius being overthrown, commits suicide. When one member of Cassius's army finds Cassius dead, he then also kills himself. Brutus is defeated and runs upon his sword. Conflict in Rome is at an end. As a twelve year old this wasn't the best book I've ever read. It was a little confusing with a lot of characters and action. I thought the book was going to be about Julius Caesar but it was more about the conspirators getting rid of him. One of the morals was don't murder anyone because you will have to live with the guilt the rest of your life. This play taught me a little about Rome and war. I really enjoy reading Shakespeare. Overall this was a good book.
    • 3/5
      Julius Caesar is the first Shakeaspeare I ever read (in English I). I didn't remember much of it when I picked it up again in preparation for a performance at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, but was pleasantly surprised by how modern and relevant it seemed.
    • 5/5
      I think everyone knows parts of this play: "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears." The first part of it is maybe not so well known, but I think most people know something of Mark Antony's speech after Caesar's death. I think this might be my favourite Shakespeare play so far -- possibly partly due to already loving to read about Caesar, but also because of the strength of the rhetoric in it.

      I have actually seen parts of this performed -- the speech I referred to, actually -- and when I'd read it, I looked on youtube for performances of my favourite parts. I'd go see this play in a heartbeat.

      So, anyone remember why I disliked Shakespeare before...? I do wish schools wouldn't shove Romeo and Juliet down people's throats: it's far from my favourite.
    • 4/5
      I read this play just after finishing Goldsworthy's excellent biography of Caesar. The play focuses much more on the conspirators, especially Brutus and Cassius, rather than the titular subject, who indeed hardly appears in person and is only about three scenes, one of them as a ghost. It is splendid stuff, largely, at least in the initial acts based on the premise that the conspirators were freeing Rome of a tyrant through their act; only, when Antony makes his famous "friends, Romans, countrymen" speech does a more nuanced view of Caesar's positives and negatives enter the scene. Not one of the meatier plays, but a good supplement to other reading about the period.
    • 4/5
      This is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays and one that I have read and reread over the years in addition to seeing several performances of the play. The classic story is informed by history as we know from Roman accounts about the life and death of Julius Caesar. Shakespeare adhered closely to the version of the story in Plutarch's Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans. In comparing prominent figures from Greek and Roman history , Plutarch presented history as a compendium of the deeds of great men, portraying the characters with all the ambiguities and idiosyncrasies that were present in their lives. The writings of Marcu Tullius Cicero also informed Shakespeare. Cicero was a staunch republican and his dislike of Caesar preceded the conspiracy that led to his assassination, which conspiracy Cicero did not directly participate in. A final source for Shakespeare was the Roman historian Appian who chronicled the civil wars as part of his longer history of Rome. All of these sources inform the dramatic tension within this play adding a historical realism to Shakespeare's own dramatic genius. I especially like the relationship between Caesar and his wife. I also found the psychology of the characters, particularly Brutus, an important aspect of the drama. This helps make many of the characters from Brutus and Cassius to Mark Antony as memorable as the title character. It is one of the great Roman plays in Shakespeare's works, and it is both an historical and a dramatic achievement.
    • 5/5
      I love the Folger editions w awesome illustrations from the library. This is a larger sized paperback which is easy on the eyes. I have to say that Shakespeare is fairly neutral in presenting the main characters.Was happy to see "Let loose the dogs of war", though I previously thought that was from one of the Henry's.
    • 3/5
      I read this due to my interest in HBO's Rome series (which has been cancelled after only 2 seasons - why TV gods, WHY???). Anyway, as an English major I read tons of Shakespeare, so it wasn't a challenging read for me and I found my mind analyzing language/passages as I would have been required to do in school. Let's just say the history plays have never been my favorites; maybe knowing the ending spoils the play?
    • 3/5
      Great Play, could easily see this as a modern re-telling set in the Italian Mob or as hotile financial take over...I see Macbeth the same way.But betrayal is a hell of a thing.
    • 3/5
      This is the best William Shakespeare that I have ever read. I haven't read much but this one was really appealing to me. Even though I knew the ending, I couldn't put the book down until the end.
    • 4/5
      "Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look." This was one of Shakespeare's more excellent books in my opinion. While historical it wasn't as bad as one of the Richard books--it had a timeless story without being too historical or too political, especially British-ly political. One of the original eponymous tragedy, a story of a man's success and betrayal. A wonderful masterpiece and underrated.
    • 4/5
      Forgive me that it took me eight months to finish Shakespeare's shortest play. I kept picking it up, reading the first act, and then forgetting. It's strange reading about Roman history through compound filters: dramatization, Shakespearean England, what we know of the Roman Republic, modern norms. One gets so twisted around that nary an eyebrow is raised in Act 2 when Caesar asks "What is't o'clock?" (Brutus: "Caesar, 'tis strucken eight.") Such a tangle that it might not jump immediately to mind that there were probably not a whole lot of chiming clocks in the first century BC. We've got Centurions herein acting like they're on Queen Elizabeth's court. Strange.This play is brief. Brief enough that it doesn't feel like a story so much as a string of exchanges. Brutus (who refers to himself in the third person and thus puts me in the mind of Tarzan or other deep-voiced simpleton) seems instantly swayed to subterfuge. Caesar is full of lofty exaltations but kind of amounts to nothing when you think about it. Marc Antony does show a bit of craftiness, and Cassius is devious. I do like the way Casca responds to Cassius' invitation to dinner and I hope I can use it myself sometime: "Ay, if I be alive, and your mind hold, and your dinner worth the eating."I do feel like that sometimes.
    • 5/5
      Wow that Brutus was one sneaky guy he just wanted to be like Caesar. and then the scene when they killed Caesar was like WOW
    • 3/5
      Had to read the play, cause I love the history. Im not a big fan of Shakespeare, but the loved the play because of the charectors.
    • 5/5
      One begins to understand cultural references the more one reads Shakespeare, and Julius Caesar is no exception to this rule (this is perhaps especially true for Star Trek fans). The fault being not in our stars but in ourselves is a great bit of poetry that everyone should heed.
    • 4/5
      did an adaptation of a scene of this! love it!
    • 5/5
      The first Shakespeare I ever read. I am wildly in love with Marc Antony (odd, because I actively despise him in [book: Antony and Cleopatra]).
    • 4/5
      One of the most powerful of his plays. Yes, the characters are set in black and white in true Shakespearean style and there is no room for hman error, but therein lies the beauty and power of this drama.
    • 5/5
      I hope to see this again soon. The first time I saw it as a high school play, the next time in 1997 at a Pub theater (more members of the cast than the audience) next to the railroad station in Greenwich England...with a wonderful redo as a Mafia, Chicago script.
    • 2/5
      I read this play during my Sophomore year of high school. I loved it! "Et tu, Brute!" I thought of it again because I'm reading "A Long Way Gone", and this play is referenced frequently.
    • 5/5
      Shakespeare’s dissection of the damage that idealism can do in politics is still relevant.
    • 4/5
      Cassius is quickly able to plant the idea of overthrowing Julius Caesar in the mind of Brutus, a man who claims to love Caesar. Cassius and Brutus gather a group of the Caesar's friends, who they join together to murder the leader, then tell each other that they did the man a favor and will be remembered for their courage in removing a tyrant. But then Marcus Antony gives a clever eulogy at the funeral, which causes the public to question the motives of the assassins, the conspirators no longer trust one another and Brutus finds his position threatened.A good example of how power corrupts, as even the good guy, Antony, tries to manipulate his friends to gain more for himself.
    • 5/5
      “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. Et tu, Brute. Beware the ides of March.” I'm a little embarrassed to admit that this is all I knew of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar up to this point in my life. There's so much more to this play. Shakespeare captures the tension and drama of the last years of the Roman Republic and the role of Julius Caesar's ambition in hastening its end. The L.A. Theatre Works audio production is outstanding. The cast includes Richard Dreyfuss, Kelsey Grammar, Stacy Keach, John De Lancie, and JoBeth Williams. I will listen to this recording again. Next time I will plan to do my listening when I'm able to follow along in the printed text.
    • 4/5
      'Tis happened upon chance that mine eyes have read the tale of Julius Caesar. For sooth, a great tragedy were 't. Yet happiness was clutch't betwixt mine hands that such wordsmithings are imbued into my corpus of knowledge. Brutus was not a noble understood, know that I now. It has cometh to pass that Royal Antony's quotes sitteth in upon my vernacular at the ready. What pleasure shall I give mine eyes to scan upon next? Be it, I prayeth, one of Sir William's comedies, for these tragedic readings have ravaged vexings upon my soul. Twelfth Night? Much Ado About Nothing? Instruct me, fellow plebeians.
    • 3/5
      Enh I don't know what I can tell you about this. Antony's funeral oration is fairly amusing.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful classic that truly speaks to the duality of man and his eternal search for not only power, but those that are truly pure at heart. Amazing how many quotes and sayings have come from this piece of literature.
    • 3/5
      My favourite part of this play is the "Antony is an honest man" speech. Excellent.
    • 2/5
      So dry. What a mistake to cram this down 15-year old throats just because it's short. How many 10th graders have been completely turned off by Shakespeare because this is over their head. I really didn't care much for this. Many of his history plays are far superior. Should've been called "The Rise and Fall of Brutus" because Caesar is such a minor character -- no development either.

    Book preview

    Julius Caesar - Tony Bradman

    JULIUS CAESAR

    Retold by Tony Bradman

    Illustrated by Mark Oldroyd

    CONTENTS

    List of characters

    Act One The Eagle Soars

    Act Two Strange Dreams

    Act Three Murder and Mischief

    Act Four Armies on the March

    Act Five The Noblest Roman

    About the Author

    List of characters

    Julius Caesar, Roman statesman and general

    Octavius, Triumvir after Caesar’s death

    Mark Antony, friend of Caesar and a Triumvir

    Lepidus, third member of the Triumvirate

    Marcus Brutus, leader of conspiracy against Caesar

    Cassius, instigator of conspiracy against Caesar

    Casca, conspirator

    Trebonius, conspirator

    Caius Ligarius, conspirator

    Decius Brutus, conspirator

    Metellus Cimber, conspirator

    Cinna, conspirator

    Calpurnia, wife of Caesar

    Portia, wife of Brutus

    Popilius Lena, senator

    Cicero, senator

    Flavius, tribune

    Marullus, tribune

    Lucilius, supporter of Brutus

    Titinius, supporter of Brutus

    Messala, supporter of Brutus

    Volumnius, supporter of Brutus

    Clitus, servant to Brutus

    Strato, servant to Brutus

    Lucius, servant to Brutus

    Dardanius, servant to Brutus

    Pindarus, servant to Cassius

    A soothsayer

    The ghost of Caesar

    ACT ONE

    THE EAGLE SOARS

    The people of Rome laughed and sang as they crowded through the streets of the city. It was March, the month when the Festival of Lupercal was held to mark the beginning of spring, always a good excuse to have fun. But something else had helped to make the people even happier. The war between Rome’s great men for control of the ancient city and its growing empire had just ended, leaving a single winner, the mighty Julius Caesar. And now he had returned to celebrate his victory with feasts and special games laid on for the masses.

    Not everyone was cheerful, though. Two nobles stood at the side of a street, their long white togas bright in the gloom of an overcast day, their faces hard and bitter as they watched the crowds enjoying themselves. Flavius and Marullus were supporters of Pompey, the general who had been Caesar’s enemy in the war. But Pompey was dead, and Caesar had no more rivals.

    At last, Flavius could stand it no more. He stepped out in front of a group of labourers who were chanting ‘CAESAR! CAESAR!’ as they strolled along.

    ‘What are you doing?’ said Flavius. ‘Have you no shame?’

    ‘None at all!’ they grinned. ‘We’re going to see the mighty Caesar!’

    ‘Have you forgotten Pompey already?’ snarled Marullus. ‘There was a time when you would have waited all day just for a glimpse of him. Now you put on your best clothes and cheer the man responsible for his death! Be gone, and pray the Gods don’t punish you for being so cruel and hard-hearted.’

    The labourers simply laughed and jeered, and Flavius drew his friend away into the shadows. ‘Let’s tear down the decorations that have been put up to honour Caesar,’ Flavius whispered. ‘He thinks he can soar above us like an eagle, but he’ll fly a little lower once we’ve plucked some feathers from his wings…’

    They hurried off, and soon Caesar himself came into the same street. At first glance he was much like any other balding Roman noble – he certainly wasn’t tall or handsome. But look more closely and you could see the strength in his face, the steely determination to get whatever he wanted, the aura of power.

    He was accompanied by his wife Calpurnia, his second-in-command Mark Antony, and several others – important Romans such as Brutus and his wife Portia, the great orator Cicero, the senators Cassius and Casca.

    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1