7 OCTOBER 1922, Page 23

King Richard II., AsY ou Like It, Jul;u s Caesar

and The Merchant of Venice. Edited by J. A. Green. (Christophers. 2s. net.)—These are the first four volumes of "The Companion Shakespeare," the object of which is "to make the reading of the play in itself as intelligent and joyful as possible." They are well printed, well bound and surprisingly cheap ; they should, moreover, be valuable to those illiterates or backward children who need such explanations as puny =weak, ruth.=pity, lascivious metres-. words which do harm, ancient malice =long-standing ill-will. In addition, the text is interspersed with exhortations and questions to the reader ; and there is, of course, an illustration of the Globe Theatre.