If you don't like it, blame your teacher, not Willie Shakes.

I liked the lesson in this story, which is that corruption comes with consequences. Macbeth got into power the wrong way, and he faced the consequences that made him completely miserable in his new position of power. I found Lady Macbeth’s role interesting. I disliked some of the imagery because it was kind of frightening, like the hallucinations and witches. So I would give the book 4 stars.

Another classical tragedy by Shakespeare, this play focuses on a man named Macbeth, who is told by three mysterious witches that he shall be King of Scotland. After telling his wife about this matter, they plan with artifice to achieve such a position of power. The consequences and faults from multiple characters within this play are what make it such a tragic plot. Readers interested in Shakespeare’s writing or tragedy should find this play enjoyable.

Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare, featuring themes relating to greed and its consequences. Since its first appearance in the 17th century, the play has received attention and praise from around the world, and is now often used in the American high school system. The plot centers around the tragedy of Macbeth, a nobleman who commits heinous crimes out of greed, and his inevitable punishment. Though Macbeth is one of the main antagonists of the play, the audience grows attached to his flawed yet human qualities. If you haven’t read the play yet, I’d definitely recommend reading it, it’s not very long and is sure to hold your attention. Due to the rather violent scenes and the use of early modern English, I would give this book an age rating of 13 and up.

Macbeth is a thane of Scotland who has just won a war against Norway. He and his friend Banquo mysteriously see three witches who look the complete opposite of humans. They give three prophecies: Macbeth will become the Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth will become King, Banquo will not become King but will have many sons who will be King. They brush it off but soon after Macbeth indeed becomes the Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth now believes in the prophecies and he knows what he must do next: kill the king. Macbeth is a brilliant play by Shakespeare that showcases many themes such as ambition, guilt, and fear.

A wonderful study of madness, magic, and ambition gone awry.

Overall, this was surprisingly good book! To be honest, I'm not a big fan of most Shakespeare's pieces, due to the fact that they are hard to understand or generally have annoying characters. For this piece though, I was pleasantly surprised! It had lots of suspenseful and dramatic moments and the characters were quite well developed. This book also included a strong female character which is not that common in Shakespeare's books. It also included fantasy elements like witches which made the piece way better. The only complaints I have, is that even though it is easier to understand than Shakespeare's other pieces, it is still written in Shakespearean. Additionally, Macbeth's character arc doesn't seem completely realistic, but given the book is about witches and prophecies, it isn't too far fetched. I would say this is the best of Shakespeare's pieces.

Macbeth was originally a play written by William Shakespeare. It tells the story of a Scottish nobleman and his journey through corruption and thirst for power. Macbeth starts out an honourable man and a nationally feared warrior. He is approached by three witches who predict that he will become Thane of Cawdor and then King of Scotland. After the witches depart, he is given the title of Thane of Cawdor. He is now eager to fulfill the second half of the prophecy and become king—by any means necessary.
I loved this book. I especially loved Lady Macbeth’s character, for she is manipulative and driven, even though women from the 17th century are usually portrayed as dainty and elegant. The storyline is wild and there are plenty of plot twists. I liked the hidden meaning behind many elements. It allows for a deepened reading experience. The main message is not to fall victim to overconfidence, and that no one is invincible. The only problem for me was decoding the language, given that I'm not used to the early English Shakespeare writes in. However, a Google search answered all my questions. I’d totally recommend this book to readers 12 and up, given the violence.
@PennyFields of the Hamilton Public Library's Teen Review Board

Macbeth By William Shakespeare Review
5 stars
ages 16-17
After Macbeth, a Scottish general, receives a prophecy from a group of witches, he feels destined to make reality of the prophecy. The prophecy that the witches declare reveal that Macbeth was soon to be the king of Scotland. And with a little help from his wife, Lady Macbeth, Macbeth is driven to reach his goal, no matter the case. Macbeth’s plan takes turn after turn full of violent murders and followed up by his own guilt. After a frightful journey, Macbeth finally reaches his goal. However, his achievement does not bring him joy, and instead leads him into a state of despair, and soon enough, more murders and even war. With insecurities and guilt and fear surrounding Macbeth, he runs away and ends the story with a sad ending. I really enjoyed reading Macbeth. It showed that happiness really is the biggest gift, no matter what kind of situation you are in. And the level of authority and power won’t always bring your greatest joy. It is better to learn to be satisfied with where you are, work hard, and find joy in the little things.

Honestly this has been my least favorite of all the Shakespeare I've read. I really enjoyed getting to read about the weird sisters but that was the extent of my enjoyment. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are just flat out unlikable and MacDuff just feels like a generic hero to the narrative. I think overall I prefer the comedies over the tragedies and that might just be because these tropes have been used for centuries and don't bring a lot of new material to the table.

I can appreciate the fact that Macduff is supposed to be the foil to Macbeth but I wish we had more of Macduff so I cared about him more as a character he just felt like more off a plot device to support the Macbeth narrative than an actual character.