Chapter 1:

Everyone in the class laughed because Sara Oldman wasn’t paying attention and they thought
she was thinking in the rode and hunting in USA. 4 months ago, she and her family moved from
Montana in the USA to Winchester in England. She was excited and she thought her new
classmates would think that she was interesting because she was American. However
everyone had their own group of friends and no one wanted to include her in theirs.

The teacher asked a young man to stand up. He was David (a student teacher from Spain) and
the teacher wanted students to meet him. Instead continue reading Don Quixote, David would
tell them about Miguel de Cervantes’ life.

He was a man of action, he fought in the naval battle of Lepanto in a ship called La Marquesa,
he was suffering from malaria but he wanted to fight because he preferred to die serving his
king and his God. During the battle he was wounded in the stomach and in his left hand; he
lost his use. He’s often referred to as “el manco de Lepanto”. When he return home, he
received letters of recommendation to the king.

Cervantes’ ship was captured by pirates and he was taken to Algiers as a slave. A monk called
Fray Juan Gil convince his captors to release him. Cervantes and Shakespeare died on the same
day.

Sara really enjoyed the talk and when she knew about the independent project for credit she
thought too in the idea of spending less time in the class.

She started running because the auditions for the school play (Romeo and Juliet) had already
began.

Chapter 2:

-Miss Kirk: drama teacher who was directing the play.

-Mr Young: teacher

When it was her turn, she couldn’t remember the monologue. She tried to be calm but she
couldn’t remember what came after the second line. She thought she couldn’t do and told it to
the teacher. Sara’s mum asked her about the audition and she thought her daughter was very
brave. Next day in the cafeteria, Miss Kirk called her but Sara was so embarrassed. Miss Kirk
told her that even the best actors sometimes have bad auditions. Sara smiled and miss Kirk
asked her if she would like to be her stage manager what is a great opportunity to learn about
theatre and directing. Sara accepted honoured the first rehearsal would be tomorrow
afternoon. She is very happy because she would meet new people and she will become part of
her new school.

Chapter 3:

She was making progress on her project but she was confused about the reason of why
Cervantes joined the Spanish army in Italy. Her mother offered help.

-He left Spain because he had wounded a man in a duel and the man was an important person,
friend of the King.
-He travelled to Rome as an assistant to a Cardinal, a year later he joined a regiment in the
Spanish army. The regiment travelled all over Italy and Cervantes later wrote that he saw
wonderful new things during that period.

-He went to Italy to get a good job. Spaniards used to travel to Italy because Spain controlled
large parts of Italy.

They decided to choose the reason next day but when she retourned to her room only one pile
was on her desk. She thought that Justin, her 9 year-old brother, was the responsible but he
wasn’t.

She closed her eyes for a moment and when she opened them again the picture of Cervantes
on the back over of Don Quixote seemed as fit it were looking at her. He started to talk and
told her that he didn’t killed anyone. She couldn’t believe so she closed her eyes but when she
opened them the picture of Cervantes was no longer moving. She went to sleep, and the pile
on the desk was the duel.

Next day, she decided that the reason was the duel.

Chapter 4:

Sara was looking for David because she had seen a TV documentary about Shakespeare. He
was in the library correcting exams. The documentary was a kind of theatre. Shakespeare was
in a professional theatre group. He was called Chamberlain’s Men.

-Giles Alleyn: owner of the property, a Puritan (didn’t like theatre).

They moved the theatre across London because Mr Alleyn was the owner of the land, not the
theatre. They moved it to Southwark. 6 months later, they reopened with a new name: The
Globe.

Sara has seen it at the same time and at the same channel that David was watching the
football match. It bothered Sara. When she arrives to the rehearsal Miss Kirk told her that
Cheryl has broken a leg and she would do the role of the Nurse. But she has doubts so she
went home and will tell her decision next day.

Chapter 5:

-Miss Lydon: English literature teacher

Miss Lydon made them choose one theory about what Shakespeare did in his “dark period”
(any document evidence when he became part of the London theatre world. She was
searching for extra information when her dad opened the door. Stories:

-Shakespeare was forced to escape to London from Stratford so as not to go to prison. Sir
Thomas Lucy became his enemy (Shakespeare hunded deer on Lucy’s land). Illegal for Sir
Thomas.

-He worked as a school teacher during this period, he worked for Sir Thomas Hesketh who
loved theatre. Shakespeare probably helped his student act out some of the classic Greek plays
that they studied. Lord Stranger’s Men would see one of their performance and he started in
the theatre.
-The Queen’s Men were the most popular theatre company in England but a few days before a
performance one actor killed another one. They offered a job to Shakespeare in London and he
accepted.

Sara’s dad preferred the first one.

Sara opened a web page of Shakespeare and advice came out of her computer speakers. The
voice told her name and “Seize the day like I did”. She was frightened and shut down the
computer and went downstairs. She sat on the floor next to the sofa with her family. They
were watching a comedy programme, like she wasn’t laughing, her brother asked for the
reason but Sara said she was thinking about other things.

Chapter 6:

She chose next morning the third one and she is going to take the role of the Nurse in Romeo
and Juliet. She decided to study her dialogue in the school library before she went home.
While she was studying, a strong wind and all the papers fell to the floor. Sara saw that the
book was open at a monologue by Hamlet in which he was giving acting instructions to a
travelling theatre group. She began to read it. “Shakespeare seems to be teaching me how to
act through Hamlet’s lines. “Of course I am, Sara”. It was Shakespeare. The day of the
rehearsal Miss Kirk congratulated her.

-Geoffrey: a boy who acts in the play was waiting her. Sara was making her first new friend.

Chapter 7:

Sara wanted to know why she hadn’t more friends and one day while she was walking through
the school (forgotten helmet) she listened that Rebecca (Juliet) and Ian (Mercutio) said that
her American accent will ruin the production and she is a terrible actress who would make the
audience fell asleep.

Her mother asked the reason of why was Sara upset and she explained to try to relax. Her
mother has gone and Miguel de Cervantes was sitting on her bed.

Chapter 8:

He knew her difficulties to make new friends, but she shouldn’t give up the things that she
really enjoy. He never give up escaping from the prison but that was easy, he only must
concentrate on escaping. But the most difficult started when he became a free man. Anyone
believe on his talent so he had to take other jobs to make money. Like he was a tax collector,
he was excommunicated from the church a couple of times because if the church had more
grain than they needed, Cervantes confiscated it for the Armada. He had been sent to prison
unjustly several times Don Gaspar Ezpeleta, was mortally wounded outside his house so he
and his wife brought him into the house. Don Gaspar loved to seduce women and Galván, a
husband attacked him but Don Gaspar had friends like the Mayor so, instead of arresting
Galván, his family and him were arrested. Because the Mayor didn’t want Gaspar to get a bad
reputation. He never stopped writing.

Although Don Quixote became a famous novel, he sold the copyright to the publisher and he
died a poor man. Her mum woke up her. She decided to continue with the play and with the
project.

Chapter 9:
Other people in the play still unfriendly to her and Geoffrey asked her if she was busy this
weekend to have a lunch at a pizzeria in Winchester’s historic city centre. After the lunch Sara
go to a walk through the park but Geoffrey had promised help his father in the garden. At the
park, under a tree. Sara recognised Shakespeare and asked about who first wrote about him.
Robert Greene, although Greene wrote bad things about him, he felt honoured because
maybe Greene was envious of his success. He told her that she should ignore them and believe
in herself. Shakespeare had gone.

Chapter 10:

The performance would be that evening.

She couldn’t sleep and eat, she wasn’t the only one who arrived early at the school hall. She
wish good luck to Rebecca and Ian “Break a leg”. Before the play, Miss Kirk congratulated them
for their hard work. It’s better be nervous because that helps you to concentrate, it’s an old
theory in the theatre. She made the audience laugh because she had some funny moments.
When it was her turn to take their bows the audience’s applause became louder and louder.
She was Shakespeare and Cervantes who were applauding. Everyone wanted to tell her about
the good job she has done.

Next morning, with Geoffrey, they read the review, she was included among the four better
actors. The worst actors had been Rebecca and Ian, they exaggerated. Her family, when read
the review congratulated her. She feel like she’s starting to belong here.

Chapter 11:

Next day, after the performance, Nick (Romeo) asked her about going to eat a hamburger. He
was 18 and he was one of the most popular boys at the school she accepted but she has
already meet with Geoffrey to eat an ice cream. She lied Geoffrey. All conversations stopped
when she was walking with Nick and she thought the girls were envious of her. He has a car
and he opened the passenger door before he got in on the driver’s side. She thought he is
handsome and a gentleman, he paid both hamburger and chips. Like she was tired he left her
at home but she isn’t tired now. She was bored, he only talk about himself. But Sara was
confused because he is one on the most popular person but he doesn’t make her laugh. She
thought of Geoffrey.

Cervantes and Shakespeare were both in her bedroom.

Chapter 12:

Shakespeare got married with Anne Hathaway because she was pregnant and that’s the
reason that he moved to London by yourself and left his family in Stratford.

Cervantes got married for money with Catalina de Salazar but Catalina’s mum had lied because
she wanted her daughter to get married.

They advice her that she should spend time to choose anyone who make her feel good about
herself. Shakespeare read the first part of Don Quixote but Cervantes didn’t read any of his
plays.

Sara started to fell asleep so Cervantes and Shakespeare decided to go. There were 2 notes at
the bottom of the page that looked like they had been written with a quill (pluma) that was still
on the table. She decided to talk about that with Geoffrey.
Vocabulary:

USA: getting in line UK: stand in a queue

USA: movie UK: film

Deer: ciervos

Bothered: preocupado

Recover: recuperarse

Wounded: herido

Defeated: vencidas

Back cover: contraportada

Look forward to: deseaba

Hunting: caza

Seize the day: aprovecha el momento

School joke: hazmereír

Froze: se quedó paralizada

Roles: papeles, en una obra

Play: obra

Release: liberar

Monk: monje

Feel like: apetecer

Stage manager: directora de escena

Honoured: honrada

Ostler: mozo de escuadra

Make a living: ganrse la vida

Tax collector: recaudador de impuestos

Take their bows: salir a saludar