Starting on Shakespeare?

I loved Hamlet. That's the one that got me really started. But I would suggest maybe reading the basic plot line or cliff notes before reading it in its entirety. It can be hard to get as much as you can out of reading him without a little training on reading the writing style. I found it helpful when I was just starting out to read the whole plot line in modern day English so it was easier to follow his writing without too much work. Plus scanning through some of his plot lines will give you an idea of which you would enjoy more.

I recommend starting with a comedy. They are full of humor and always end on a happy note, usually with a wedding.

My personal favorite is As You Like It, but Midsummer Night's Dream and Twelfth Night are also good comedies to read (and watch). Taming of the Shrew is also good because you can compare it to the musical "Kiss Me Kate."

Julius Caesar is a good history, as are the Henrys. Antony and Cleopatra is excellent and King Lear should probably be read later/after you've read a number of Shakespeare's.

Hope this helps.

Don't read Shakespeare: see his plays performed.

If that advice is impractical for you, I'd start with Henry V. After you've read it, check out Branagh's film.

Second choice would be A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Leave Hamlet until last.

My first exposure to Shakespeare was Kenneth Branaugh's film version of 'Much Ado About Nothing.' I read the play soon afterwards, and would highly recomend it as a starting point, mostly because it's pretty darn funny, and laughter is a pretty universal language.

However, if you lean more towards drama... the first one I read and actually understood was Antony and Cleopatra.

Midsummer Night's Dream

A Comedy of Errors.