A first-time-in-paperback reissue, this full-fledged biography takes on all of the famous Shakespearean debates, from whether or not Shakespeare actually wrote his plays to speculation regarding his sexuality to the mysterious curse he set upon his own grave. This lively and provocative book weaves together the most complete, objective, and readable account of Shakespeare's life ever written. Includes 24 pages of illustrations.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Wilson theorizes that glover John Shakespeare, the Bard's father, was a member of a Catholic underground movement, and that William, too, secretly harbored Catholic sympathies. The slender evidence cited for this hypothesis includes a spiritualized last will, presumably John's, discovered in 1757 but quickly lost, as well as the playwright's purchase in 1613 of Blackfriars Gatehouse, a clandestine Catholic gathering place. Wilson (Jesus: The Evidence) proposes Ferdinando Stanley, Lord Stranges, as the mystery patron behind Shakespeare's Henry VI/Richard II tetralogy. Will, in this scenario, would have observed political intrigue close-up at Stanley's court, thus explaining how a low-born actor rapidly became familiar with high style and the ways of the world. There is virtually no hard evidence to back up this theory. Nevertheless, through his own indefatigable sleuthing and his lucid synthesis of the research of previous scholars, Wilson has produced an intriguing, richly illustrated, surprisingly full-bodied biography, which plunges readers into Shakespeare's turbulent milieu and provides an autobiographical or historic context for most of his plays.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
In this biography, Wilson (The After Death Experience, Morrow, 1990) has marshaled all the known facts about Shakespeare, unearthed others about the people he knew and places he lived, and woven them all together into a convincing, readable account of the elusive man from Stratford-upon-Avon. Much of this book reads like a detective story, and although Wilson, like all Shakespeare biographers, does not have enough clues to solve every mystery, his willingness to investigate areas that others have overlooked pays rich dividends. His speculative explanation of how Shakespeare acquired his knowledge of aristocratic life and high-level political intrigue seems not improbable, even though the hard evidence for it is nil. Wilson also argues (against many eminent authorities) that Shakespeare had strong Roman Catholic sympathies. Wilson builds a strong case on some recurring coincidences in Shakespeare's life. For both general readers and scholars.
Bryan Aubrey, Fairfield., Ia.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Bryan Aubrey, Fairfield., Ia.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 17 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Being a Shakespearean actor, I am very interested in consuming any information concerning the bard from critiques of the plays and sonnets to varied information about his life. Usually though its a chore to ponder through overblown scholarly disertaions on the works that totally ignore the dimension of the presentation and performance. Even more so with dull biographers who grapple with sparse facts on Shakespeare's life and who eventually draw a very incomplete view of the man. That all changed in reading this book! Ian Wilson paints the most complete portrait of the bard that I have ever read. Piecing together bits of direct and surrounding evidence, selections of the plays and political intriques of the time Wilson writes an exciting narrative that reads more like a screenplay then a dissertation. I found myself dieing to know what happend next as his life unfolded. Here Shakespeare appears as a true Human being and not the stuff of half baked legend and places emotion and motivation behind the writing of the plays. It describes in detail his dealings with the high members of the court of England, rising through the ranks of the theatrical world and gives a poignant glimpse into the man himself and dispels any allusion to the authorship question, especially from Edward De Vere. Given the success of "Shakespeare in Love", Hollywood should take this book and fashion a mini-series on his life. There is more than enough drama and mystery in these pages for three films. Definitely a great read for any scholar or Shakespearean actor that seek to relish the rich legacy that Will left to our culture.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
It is indeed unfortunate that this book is not available. Keep trying! It is well worth it! Simply the best book on Shakespeare, The Man, I have ever read. Wilson's research is awesome and his feel for his subject is highly sensitive. Also, anyone who is curious about whether Shakespeare was a "secret" Catholic will find this book chock-full of information on that question.
-- David Nava
Associate Artistic Director
Shakespeare's Motley Crew
Chicago, IL
-- David Nava
Associate Artistic Director
Shakespeare's Motley Crew
Chicago, IL
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is very well written account of what we know of Shakespeare's Life. Wilson makes a very persuasive case for Shakespeare as the author of the plays and sonnets. At times his reasoning becomes a little convoluted, but almost all books on subjects like this have some twistings in their reasoning. After reading this I would stand behind Shakespeare on the authorship debate, partly because there is no reason to believe that he did not write the plays. Jeff Anderson
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Hard to Put Down, But Flawed
I found this well-illustrated and well-researched book hard to put down. It reads like a detective novel. Like the title says, Mr. Read more
Published on February 9, 2010 by Randy Kadish
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb!
"Shakespeare: the Evidence" is a wonderful resource for anyone who is intrigued by William Shakespeare and the Elizabethan era, but becomes bogged down by dense research... Read more
Published on July 26, 2008 by Sandra Drew
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful
This is a great book. It is easy to read and it is interesting. Mr. Wilson does not just write about Shakespear and give his theories, he provides reasoned arguments about those... Read more
Published on October 28, 2003 by apoem
4.0 out of 5 stars
Behold the Man!
Books on Shakespeare roughly seem to fall into two categories: Standard scholarly books that downplay the man and focus on the plays and ingenious, entertianing books by frequently... Read more
Published on January 9, 2003 by E. Martin
3.0 out of 5 stars
Flawed
This is a fascinating book, but I was dismayed by Wilson's anti-Elizabeth bias. He refers to her as a "hideous old woman" responsible for the death of "many worthy... Read more
Published on January 24, 2000 by Cynthia L. Mclendon
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