Shakespeare: The Biography Summary and Reviews

Shakespeare: The Biography
by Peter Ackroyd

Shakespeare: The Biography
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Book Summary Information

Author: Peter Ackroyd
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Published)
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2005-10-25
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 592
Publisher: Nan A. Talese

Book Reviews of Shakespeare: The Biography

Book Review: Excellent
Summary: 5 Stars

Let me first preface this, I am by no means an expert on Shakespeare's life, times and works. In fact I came somewhat late to his plays due to a college professor who, in her infinite wisdom, decided to spend six weeks of a semester convincing us students that she was a Shakespearian "expert" and confirming just the opposite. And at least in my case, made me hesitant, if not resistant, to pursuing the Bard's works on stage. That being said I bit the bullet, grew up and have seen my fair share of Shakespeare plays performed, including Braodway, the Folger, etc. My point here is that the reader need not have a wealth of previous Shakespeare knowledge to both appreciate and enjoy this book.

To put things in perspective Shakespeare was born 300 years before the Civil War and died 300 years before World War I. Attempting to piece together his life in any detail is thus very difficult. Besides his works, which were either updated and revised continually by the playwright during his lifetime and/or collected by his peers after his death, there's a minimal Shakespeare "paper trail", i.e. questionable contemporary descriptions, church records, playbills, deeds and other documented business transactions, or lawsuits.

Shakespeare and his peers were inventing a medium - plagiarizing regularly and adding their own twist, which was not considered a bad thing at the time - and were not concerned about their historical legacy. Their goal was to entertain and make money. Shakespeare accomplished both and that his works still resonate 400 years after he wrote them is testimony to this.

The author fills in these very large biographical gaps by documenting and chronicling the times Shakespeare lived in, adding what pertinent facts history has left us, as well as reasonable conjecture. This may sound like sparse reading - it's not. By not meandering too far from his subject Ackroyd has written a very engaging book. At times the language can get a bit overwrought - Shakespeare's "white hot quill" and "cauldron of creation" - but this can be pardoned as the author is obviously more than a fan.

Conversely Ackroyd does a very good job of not over quoting contemporary sources or Shakespeare's words, which with the spelling, vernacular and syntax of the times potentially could have bogged down the reader. In a nutshell the author explains these intricacies and nuances without being condescending - unlike my college professor. The author's exuberance proved a good thing for a Shakespeare novice like me.

This is a very good book on both Shakespeare's life and times; it is not a detailed analysis of his work, which is exactly what I hoped for when I picked up this book.

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