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A review by skyring
Shakespeare: The World as Stage by Bill Bryson
4.0
Bill Bryson has always been good at making fun of people, and he indulges himself in this book, especially in the "Shakespeare didn't write Shakespeare" section, where several people line up to have their bums kicked by Bryson. Throughout the book, there are any number of witty Brysonisms, and it is an entertaining read.
More latterly, Bill Bryson has become a superb history writer, and with this book on Shakespeare, he spins out the remarkably few facts known of Shakespeare the man into a fine biography, drawing upon the times, the places and the people known to Shakespeare. It's certainly a colorful life, especially the time spent in the seedy London streets, where he produced the plays that thrill us still.
Theatre in Elizabethan times was immensely popular, and there was a thriving trade in playwrighting, where drama was produced and presented under conditions of remarkable bareness and intimacy. No curtains, little in the way of sets or costumes, actors and audience breathing each other's farts. In some theatres, one could actually buy seats upon the stage itself. Bryson brings the atmosphere alive, and the plays gain more charm and gusto in our minds.
What this book is not is a treatise upon the plays or verses. They are passed over, for the most part, with a few references and quotes to show us a facet of the life of the author, and to illuminate his remarkable talent. Dear reader, seek elsewhere for the sparkle and wit of Shakespeare the writings, for this is a biography of Shakespeare the man, and it is a very good one, all the more astonishing for the fact that everything we know directly of him could easily fit on a single page.
More latterly, Bill Bryson has become a superb history writer, and with this book on Shakespeare, he spins out the remarkably few facts known of Shakespeare the man into a fine biography, drawing upon the times, the places and the people known to Shakespeare. It's certainly a colorful life, especially the time spent in the seedy London streets, where he produced the plays that thrill us still.
Theatre in Elizabethan times was immensely popular, and there was a thriving trade in playwrighting, where drama was produced and presented under conditions of remarkable bareness and intimacy. No curtains, little in the way of sets or costumes, actors and audience breathing each other's farts. In some theatres, one could actually buy seats upon the stage itself. Bryson brings the atmosphere alive, and the plays gain more charm and gusto in our minds.
What this book is not is a treatise upon the plays or verses. They are passed over, for the most part, with a few references and quotes to show us a facet of the life of the author, and to illuminate his remarkable talent. Dear reader, seek elsewhere for the sparkle and wit of Shakespeare the writings, for this is a biography of Shakespeare the man, and it is a very good one, all the more astonishing for the fact that everything we know directly of him could easily fit on a single page.