This engaging and fresh biography begins by examining how Shakespeare's
life turns into myth so comfortably as to seduce even the most sceptical
scholar. The early departure, the late return. Public success, private
loss. A twilight of plays about family reunions, a death at home in the
biggest house in town, the one he walked by as a schoolboy and eyed with
envy, or at least ambition. Shakespeare led an orbital life, everything
returned to where it began. He even had the dramatic good sense to die
on his birthday.
One of the appealing dynamics of the Shakespeare myth is the contrast of
his humble beginnings and his lofty achievements, persuading us that
genius might blossom anywhere. William Shakespeare: A Brief Life
honours these myths, but also explores some of the mysteries: why
Shakespeare left Stratford, who he ran with in London, why he put down
his pen and at last came home again. Ultimately, the book explores the
compelling contrast between the mere fifty two years Shakespeare lived,
with the prolonged after lives of his work and his story, which show no
sign of ending.