Inconceivable! Somehow, I had not yet read this and that is
just weird for several reasons: it’s a Jackie French historical fiction, it’s
about William Shakespeare and it’s Jackie French *grin*. So of course, it went
onto my holiday reading list which is not always about new releases. I absolutely loved it to bits. Part history,
part humour, part conjecture on Shakespeare’s life and times this is one that
would appeal not only to your lovers of historical fiction, Jackie’s other
Shakespearean-themed novels but as a ‘read around your topic’ for students with
the Bard on their reading list.
The great writer has retired very comfortably, with wealth and social status, to his home in Stratford where the humdrum of domesticity and a life far removed from London and his acclaim often plagues him.
To alleviate the tedium William takes up his pen again to write a diary for his own pleasure.
In it he not only chronicles the day-to-day doings of his household but reflects on his past and the often-tumultuous events that shaped his life.
From
his humble origins as the son, and later apprentice, of his father, the master
glover and would-be gentleman whose business sense is severely lacking to his
first and greatest love, Judyth, to his joining a troupe of players and the
beginnings of his stellar career to the vicissitudes of a life of
leisurely, but often boring, retirement.
Readers
will not only be fascinated by the insights into Shakespeare’s personal history
but also by the revelations of life in 17th century England, woven
into the fabric of the narrative in that always skilful way Jackie has with her
work.
There
are moments of real levity with the Bard’s pithy commentary on family and
acquaintances and the ongoing battle of wills between himself and his unmarried
daughter but also glimpses of tragedy with the death of his only son Hamnet as
well as his true love, Judyth. Cunningly threaded throughout are excerpts from
both poetry and plays with the purported origins or inspirations for these –
not all of them from Shakespeare’s own fertile imagination. Naturally no work
about Shakespeare, whether fact or fiction, would be without the inevitable
questioning about the details of his life or indeed, his death but it goes
without saying that Jackie’s research is extensive and exhaustive and that
drawing conclusions depends on this.
Published to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death this is a book which will both entertain and inform readers of all ages from around 12 upwards. Teaching notes are available from the publisher here.
Title: The Diary of William Shakespeare, Gentleman
Author: Jackie French
Publisher: Harper Collins, $16.99
Publication Date: 25 July 2016
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781460750575
For ages: 12+
Type: Middle Grade Fiction