The Shakespeare Stealer

Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

CHAPTERS 1-3

Reading Check

1. What does Dr. Bright call his system of writing?

2. Whom do Widge and the stranger encounter in the woods?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What task does Dr. Bright send Widge to do that demonstrates Dr. Bright’s dishonesty?

2. What major change occurs in Widge’s life in Chapter 2, when the stranger appears at Dr. Bright’s apothecary?

Paired Resource

Orphans

• This 1885 Thomas Kennington portrait depicts two orphaned children.
• This resource relates to the theme of Friendship and Family.
• This painting is not from the same time period as Widge, but it does tell us something about how at least one English painter viewed the situation of orphaned children. What do the colors, the composition, and the details of this painting say about Kennington’s feelings? Is there anything happy or hopeful about it, especially when compared to Widge’s situation?

Shorthand

• This article explains the history of shorthand systems and offers several examples.
• Which one of these systems does Dr. Bright’s scriptography most resemble? How hard would it be to write using these rapid handwriting techniques? What does Widge’s ability to excel in Dr. Bright’s system tell you about Widge?

CHAPTERS 4-7

Reading Check

1. What is the name of Widge’s new “master”?

2. What form of transportation does Widge take for the first time when he is in London?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What task does Widge’s new “master” expect him to perform?

2. What prevents Widge from carrying out the task his “master” assigned him?

CHAPTERS 8-12

Reading Check

1. What common Elizabethan-era prejudice caused their fellow lodger to insult Falconer?

2. What does Sander call the sheets of paper that each player uses to learn his part?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does his run-in with the theater’s “fencing master” demonstrate about Falconer?

2. How does Widge explain his presence when Thomas Pope catches him backstage?

Paired Resource

“The Upstart Crow: Shakespeare’s Feud With Robert Greene”

• This 17-minute episode from the humanities podcast Hold That Thought features an interview with professor Joe Loewenstein about plagiarism during the Elizabethan era. (Both the sound file and a transcript can be found on this page.)
• This resource relates to the theme of The Importance of Honor.
• How is Simon Bass’s plan different from Shakespeare’s own practice of borrowing plots? What seems ironic about the fact that Hamlet is the play Simon Bass is trying to steal? Why do you think Widge goes along with the plan?

CHAPTERS 13-16

Reading Check

1. Who rescues Widge from the thieves?

2. What role is Widge given to perform in the company’s new play?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does Widge end up lost and alone in an unfamiliar part of London?

2. What happens when Nick finally shows up at the theater during the performance in which he is supposed to be playing Hamlet’s mother?

CHAPTERS 17-20

Reading Check

1. What does Widge say he was doing when Mr. Pope asks about his overnight absence?

2. Who asks the company to put on a special performance of Hamlet at Whitehall?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Widge learn about Julian’s parents during their fencing lesson?

2. What offer does Mr. Heminges surprise Widge with?

Paired Resource

“When Friends Are ‘Like Family’”

• This essay from The New York Times shares author Deborah Tannen’s reflections on friendships that become as close as family relationships.
• This resource relates to the theme of Friendship and Family.
• What points does Tannen make about the characteristics of family-like friendships? Do you see these characteristics developing in Widge’s relationships at the theater? How is Widge growing and changing as a result?

CHAPTERS 21-24

Reading Check

1. What is Julian’s birth name?

2. What name does Widge adopt after his conversation with The Queen?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Widge do to the man who stabbed Nick, and why?

2. Why does Sander believe he must inform the theater company about Simon Bass sending Widge to steal Hamlet?

Paired Resource

“Disguise in Shakespeare”

• Theater scholar Lee Jamieson explains why disguise is common in Shakespeare’s plays.
• This resource relates to the theme of Identity.
• What kinds of disguises were common in Shakespeare’s plays? How is Julian’s disguise related to Portia’s in The Merchant of Venice? How are Widge’s name and his real purpose at the theater examples of dramatic irony?

CHAPTERS 25-27

Reading Check

1. Why does Mr. Armin have to rescue Widge during their pursuit of Nick?

2. What is Falconer’s real identity?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why is Widge not seriously injured when Nick stabs him?

2. How does Widge recover the stolen playbook?

Recommended Next Reads 

Shakespeare’s Scribe by Gary L. Blackwood

• In this sequel to The Shakespeare Stealer, 15-year-old Widge is now touring England with the theater company. During a stop in York, he finds clues about his mother’s identity and meets a mysterious man who claims to be his father.
• Shared themes include Identity, The Importance of Honor, and Friendship and Family.
• Shared topics include historical fiction, Elizabethan England, Shakespeare, theater, deceit and disguise, loss of parents, and coming of age.    
• Shakespeare’s Scribe on SuperSummary

King of Shadows by Susan Cooper

• This middle-grade novel follows contemporary teenager Nathan Field as he eagerly accepts an acting job that will allow him to perform in a replica of the Globe Theater. When Nathan develops a strange illness that transports him back in time, he finds himself acting in a play staged by Shakespeare himself.
• Shared themes include Identity and Friendship and Family.
• Shared topics include Elizabethan England, Shakespeare, theater, deceit and disguise, loss of parents, and coming of age.
• King of Shadows on SuperSummary