A Midsummer Night's Dream: Book 5 of the Post Apocalyptic Space Shakespeare Series
About this ebook
But Shakespeare remains.
A machine civilization, so far advanced that it has the power to recreate lost civilizations, stumbles upon the works of the playwright, William Shakespeare.
With only those plays to represent humanity, the machines must decide whether humanity is worth resurrecting or not.
The only way to know the plays is to stage them.
Enter J-9, although she prefers to be called Janine. She is a human-like construct, created by the machines, to enter and experience the plays of Shakespeare, as they run in simulation, indistinguishable from reality.
Based on Janine’s impressions of humanity, drawn from her experiences of living within the unfolding plays, the machines will render their judgment: is humanity worth saving or shall humanity be consigned to oblivion?
The stakes are higher than the bard could have ever imagined.
Created by Ted Neill, the Post Apocalyptic Space Shakespeare remains true to the plots of William Shakespeare’s plays while introducing stage directions that make the text more accessible to modern readers. The addition of Janine as an outsider looking in—and caught up in her own story framing the action of the plays—provides commentary and insight usually buried in academic papers but delivered here with heart and humor. It’s an original take on classic plays that will remind readers why the plays endure five hundred, and maybe five billion, years after they were written.
Traditionally, Shakespeare’s plays, do not need to be read in a particular order. These “simulations,” do have an order, especially as Janine’s story evolves with them.
Simulation Order:
Hamlet
Othello
Twelfth Night
As You Like It
A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream
Much Ado About Nothing
Taming of the Shrew
Romeo & Juliet
Cymbeline
The Tempest
MacBeth
Richard III
Troilus & Cressida
Pericles
King Lear
Julius Cesar
Anthony & Cleopatra
Discover more
About the author
Globetrotter and writer Ted Neill has worked on five continents as an educator, health professional, and journalist. His writing has appeared in The Washington Post, Recovery Today, and he has published a number of novels exploring issues related to science, religion, class, and social justice. He is the 2013 winner of the Martin Luther King Jr. Torch of Peace Award. His 2017 novel, The Selah Branch, attempts to confront issues of racism and the divided political environment of the US today and the 1950s. His debut novel, City on a Hill, examines the fault lines of religious conflict in the Middle East. His novel, Reaper Moon, takes place against the backdrop of a global virus pandemic and explores how the aftermath unfolds along familiar social divides of race and politics. His young adult series, Snog Team Six, is a romp through global mythology, science fiction, video games, the Old West and South East Asia. His high-fantasy series, Elk Riders, has won numerous Kirkus stars.
He is also author of two award winning memoirs, Two Years of Wonder which chronicles his time living and working at an orphanage for children with HIV/AIDS and Finding St. Lo a combined account of his grandfather Robert Fowler’s WWII experience as well as a decorated medic in his unit, Gordon Cross. Follow Ted on Facebook and Instagram @therealauthortedneill
