Shakespearean is a remarkable book, an illuminating and personal journey that takes us to the heart of Shakespeare‰۪s art and influence. From his account of the plays‰۪ quintessential Englishness to his exploration of what he shrewdly terms their 'negligent ambiguity,' McCrum‰۪s insights are hard-earned and deeply rewardingI can‰۪t think of anything better than listening to Robert McCrum talk about Shakespeare. And this
enchanting book is the next best thing -
like a gentle chat with a genuine expert.Robert McCrum
beautifully connects Shakespeare to ourselves in a way I‰۪ve not come across before. I love his curiosity. He seems to live each day
as if he‰۪s talked to Shakespeare on the phone that morning. So far, it's
the best thing that has happened during lockdown.'
Shakespearean is a
brilliant, wise, elegant and profoundly moving book . . .
Beautifully written, inspired and inspiring: a captivating portrait of Shakespeare and ourselvesIf you ever had any doubts about the relevance of Shakespeare to the modern world,
read this book!
Wonderful and inexhaustibly fascinatingWonderful . . .
a beautiful personal testament to why Shakespeare continues to matter so much. It is crammed with original insights, and springs equally from a deep knowledge of Shakespeare‰۪s own world and a totally persuasive conviction that his plays speak to our own world, and our own selves, as cogently as they did to the Elizabethans. It is
compulsively readable and
I loved every page of it.
Reading Shakespearean was a joy . . . by far the most
accessible and erudite contemporary critique evoking with wit and profound insight that conscious (and subconscious) acknowledgement of the degrees to which Shakespeare‰Û÷s work continues to influence our cultural and political lives. It is also an
essential entertaining book for anyone who like me shares a love of the great man‰۪s plays and sonnets.McCrum writes
brilliantly about writing . . .
there is much here to stir the bloodEngaging and animated . . . McCrum
guides us rather like someone walking through a gallery . . . McCrum's Shakespeare for "times of disruption" is
a welcome participant in the contemporary conversation'
Excellent . . . the winning combination of McCrum's own insights and
sparkling language lifts Shakespearean to the
must-read list . . .
an ambitious and exhilarating rideA
beguiling mix of memoir, literary criticism and biographyA deeply personal journey into Shakespeare's work that explores how it remains relevant and always has something to say about the times we are living in.
‰Û÷Enchanting‰۪ - Simon Russell Beale
‰Û÷Remarkable‰۪ - James Shapiro
‰Û÷Wonderful . . . compulsively readable‰۪ - Nicholas Hytner
Why do the collected works of an Elizabethan writer continue to speak to us as if they were written yesterday?
When Robert McCrum began his recovery from a life-changing stroke, described in My Year Off, he discovered that the only words that made sense to him were snatches of Shakespeare. Unable to travel or move as he used to, McCrum found the First Folio became his ‰Û÷book of life‰۪, an endless source of inspiration through which he could embark on ‰Û÷journeys of the mind‰۪, and see a reflection of our own disrupted times.
An acclaimed writer and journalist, McCrum has spent the last twenty-five years immersed in Shakespeare‰۪s work, on stage and on the page. During this prolonged exploration, Shakespeare‰۪s poetry and plays, so vivid and contemporary, have become his guide and consolation. In Shakespearean he asks: Why is it that we always return to Shakespeare, particularly in times of acute crisis and dislocation? What is the key to his hold on our imagination? And why do the collected works of an Elizabethan writer continue to speak to us as if they were written yesterday?
Shakespearean is a rich, brilliant and superbly drawn portrait of an extraordinary artist, one of the greatest writers who ever lived. Through an enthralling narrative, ranging widely in time and space, McCrum seeks to understand Shakespeare within his historical context while also exploring the secrets of literary inspiration, and examining the nature of creativity itself. Witty and insightful, he makes a passionate and deeply personal case that Shakespeare‰۪s words and ideas are not just enduring in their relevance ‰ÛÒ they are nothing less than the eternal key to our shared humanity.
Robert McCrum was born and educated in Cambridge. For nearly twenty years he was editor-in-chief of the publishers Faber & Faber, until he suffered a severe stroke, the subject of his acclaimed memoir,
My Year Off. From 1996 to 2009 he was literary editor of the
Observer and associate editor until 2018. He is also the author of
Every Third Thought;
Wodehouse: A Life; six novels; and the co-author of the international bestseller
The Story of English.
