Shakespeare: An Ungentle Life (Arden Shakespeare)
"Engrossing...meticulously fleshes out her portrait of Shakespeare as social climber, as homosexual misogynist-cum-womanizer, and as skinflint...Her account of Shakespeare’s hypothetical entry into the theatrical profession is a tour de force of biographical reconstruction...Striking and original elements...Katherine Duncan-Jones shines light into dark corners and brings skeletons out of the closet. Her courageous biography is partisan, idiosyncratic, and unforgettable. Anyone seriously interested in Shakespeare should read it.—Shakespeare Quarterly "Takes us on vivid biographical sojourns into the plays and poems."—The Philadelphia Inquirer "This is a work of extensive scholarship and even wider reading, and Katherine Duncan-Jones's knowledge of late 16th century writers is probably greater than that possessed by anyone at the time . . .Ungentle Shakespeareis a model of lucid scholarship which tries neither to beautify nor vilify its subject, but to present him as a living figure in the heat and the dust of the passing world."—The Times of London "An uncommonly good book. There are riches on every page."—The Spectator "Katherine Duncan-Jones's constantly illuminating and hugely enjoyable biography restores the author and his plays to bubbly life."—The Observer "Ungentle Shakespearestrikes me as a brilliant book. It is also a fresh and original one . . . All told, I can recommendUngentle Shakespeareboth to those who think they know their Bard and to those still virgin in the matter."—Literary Review "Ungentle Shakespeareis beautifully produced and lavishly illustrated. Its author's scholarly credentials are impeccable. At the same time, she tells a good story."—The Independent "Duncan-Jones is very good at bringing to life - and exploring the historical context - of a figure whose life is notoriously difficult to document because so many facts are missing."—The Stage