The Gentleman Poet: A Novel of Love, Danger, and Shakespeare's The Tempest [Paperback]

Kathryn Johnson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 7, 2010

En route to the Americas in 1609, Elizabeth Persons, a young servant girl, sees her blinding headache as an ominous sign. Sure enough, a hurricane during the final leg of their journey tosses the ill-fated Sea Venture and its one hundred and fifty passengers and crew onto the dreaded shores of the Bermudas, the rumored home of evil spirits and dangerous natives. In the months that pass—time marked by grave hardship, mutiny, adventure, danger . . . and a blossoming love between Elizabeth and the wrecked ship's young cook—she despairs of their ever being rescued. But she finds hope and strength in a remarkable new friendship, forming a fast bond with the Sea Venture's historian, a poet traveling under the name of William Strachey. But Will is more than he seems. To many back home in England, he is known by a different name: Shakespeare. And he sees in their great shared travails the makings of a magical, truly transcendent work of theater.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Johnson imagines a backstory for Shakespeare's The Tempest in this entertaining tale of mystery, romance, and shipwreck. Recently orphaned, Elizabeth signs on as servant to the crabby benefactress of the Virginia Company, sailing with her from London to the newly founded Jamestown Colony. A colossal tempest strands the passengers and crew near the Bermuda islands, rumored to be inhabited by spirits and cannibals, but upon going ashore they discover a tropical paradise. When the ship's cook falls ill, Elizabeth takes charge of feeding the castaways. Her experiments with native herbs and vegetables are such a hit that she is soon cooking up great feasts for the group. (Johnson includes some of her recipes--for dishes like oyster stew and baygrape jelly.) When Elizabeth gives cooking lessons to her swarthy fellow cook, a romance, encouraged by the pair's mysterious friend William Strachey, blossoms. After William creates a play for the amusement of those stranded, Elizabeth--cast as Miranda--begins to unravel his true identity, and the bond they develop changes the course of her life. Johnson may not be Shakespeare, but her tribute is nevertheless a well-crafted drama.
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From Booklist

The fate of Elizabeth Persons, a servant aboard a ship bound for the Americas, is changed forever when the ship wrecks in the Bermudas, and she must take on a new role as the chef for the surviving crew. Among the survivors is the ship’s historian, William Strachey, whose wit, writing, and wisdom suggest that he could be William Shakespeare. Will helps Elizabeth gain her freedom from the cruel Mistress Horton, and the two characters are united by their determination to escape the persecution they faced in England. Set in the 1600s, this well-researched novel is sure to win praise from historical-fiction readers, but it will also appeal to Shakespeare buffs, who will enjoy the parallels to The Tempest. Pair The Gentlemen Poet with Robert Nye’s The Late Mr. Shakespeare (1999) and Bruce Cook’s Young Will (2004), among the numerous novels that speculate on the life of the Bard. --Heather Paulson

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Original edition (September 7, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061965316
• ISBN-13: 978-0061965319
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,106,538 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Satisfying read, February 21, 2011

By 

Dana W. - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gentleman Poet: A Novel of Love, Danger, and Shakespeare's The Tempest (Paperback)

This is a unique gem of a book. Johnson envisions a plausible history for William Shakespeare and his inspiration for The Tempest while rendering the intimate story of Elizabeth Persons, a servant shipwrecked in Bermuda along with her demanding mistress and a potentially mutinous group of soldiers and sailors en route to Jamestown for the Virginia Company. The luscious setting of the Bermuda islands provides more than a backdrop as Elizabeth uses native plants and herbs to create culinary magic and provide a sense of comfort and civilization to her fellow survivors, few of whom she trusts. It's an engaging story, beautifully written and hard to put down. This is a very satisfying read, and you will find yourself thinking about it long after you've turned the last page. I can't wait to see what's next for this promising author.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, Haunting, and Shakespeare, September 7, 2010

By 

Deborah "Books, Movies and Chinese Food" (Fairfax, VA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Gentleman Poet: A Novel of Love, Danger, and Shakespeare's The Tempest (Paperback)

As you know, I am a really big history and historical fiction fan. Also, even though I studied American history, I LOVE everything British especially their rich history which, don't tell anyone, I think is FAR more interesting than most American stuff. This book actually manages to combine both of these interests. The story is a wonderful blend of early American history, British history and the inspiration for one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, The Tempest.

The story is from the point of view Elizabeth, a servant girl, and gives a wonderful insight to how classes don't seem to matter once everyone is shipwrecked. I really loved her character as she struggles with her past identity and begins to create a new one in the New World. There is a lot of historical talk about the relationship between Catholics and Protestants and Elizabeth's loyalty to her parents but at the same time wanting to start afresh. Also equally as important is her being able to find love amid everything else that is going on. I adored that part of the story of watching the relationship grow even as everything else around them was uncertain.

For some reason when I started reading this book, I kept thinking it was going to be about Twelfth Night. Therefore for the first few chapters, I was horribly confused and kept wondering where people who represented Viola and Orsino. Then I finally realized "Doh! Wrong Shakespeare comedy that starts with a T!". After that it was smooth sailing (har har) from there. I really enjoyed having Shakespeare's character in the actual story. I kept picturing Joseph Fiennes, who played Shakespeare in Shakespeare in love, moving throughout the island and befriending Elizabeth. It was very interesting learning about his history and how the author perceived his relationship with his wife and children. Also interesting was the brief talk about the possible identity of the Fair Youth of his sonnets.

Even if you take away any reference to Shakespeare or "The Tempest" the story stands alone as a wonderful interpretation of what life was like for early colonists. Therefore if you don't know the plot of "The Tempest" at all, you won't be lost when reading this book. There is a lot of historical detail that makes the setting and characters come alive. It was interesting to see how the upper class, such as Mistress Horton, desperately tried to cling to their status even though they were now at the same level as the lowest servants. There are recipes in the book based on the dishes that Elizabeth made for the settlement, but as the author notes in the back, don't attempt to make them! It's quite interesting how much food was able to be made just using the natural resources on the island plus the meager offerings from the ship's supplies. This is the ultimate Survivor where the reward is not a million dollars, but just the knowledge of staying alive for another day.

This book was absolutely lovely to read. The story is beautifully written. There is humor in this book as well as deep emotional drama. There are scenes where I felt so incredibly sad for the characters and others where I cheered at their discoveries. Even though there is an abundance of Shakespeare related movies already out there, I could easily see this book being made into a movie as well. This book is going to be one of my top 10 historical reads of the year. VERY highly recommended.

5.0 out of 5 stars A captivating story, December 29, 2011

By 

Marylyn G King - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Gentleman Poet: A Novel of Love, Danger, and Shakespeare's The Tempest (Paperback)

This book starts off with a tempest at sea so realistic I was immediately transported to the time and place of the story. A hard standard to uphold, but the author manages to do so continuously throughout the novel. Without trite formulas, stock characters, or predictable plot, the story artistically combines adventure, love, and friendship. A great read, and my book club loved it.