James Shapiro Books

Ten years ago James Shapiro won the Samuel Johnson Prize for his bestseller 1599: A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare. Now, to mark the forthcoming 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death, comes a compelling look at a no less extraordinary year in his life: 1606. 1606 is an intimate portrait of one of Shakespeare's most inspired moments: the year of King Lear, Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra. 1606, while a very good year for Shakespeare, was a fraught one for England. Plague returns. There is surprising resistance to the new king's desire to turn England and Scotland into a united Britain. And fear and uncertainty sweep the land and expose deep divisions in the aftermath of a failed terrorist attack that came to be known as the Gunpowder Plot. James Shapiro deftly demonstrates how these extraordinary plays responded to the tumultuous events of this year, events that in unexpected ways touched upon Shakespeare's own life. By immersing us in Shakespeare's England, 1606 profoundly changes and enriches our experience of his plays, works that continue to speak to us with such immediacy.

Internationally acclaimed Shakespeare scholar James Shapiro presents a first-of-its-kind anthology tracing the rich and surprising story of how Americans made the Bard their own. Through poetry, fiction, essays, plays, memoirs, songs, speeches, letters, movie reviews and comedy routines, Shakespeare's legacy in the U.S is collected here. Contributions come from a remarkable range of American writers and statesmen, from Emerson, Melville, Lincoln and Twain to John Berryman, Cynthia Ozick and Bill Clinton (who wrote a foreword).

Presents the history of Shakespeare, following him through a single year that changed not only his fortunes, but the course of literature. In this one year, we follow what he reads and writes, what he saw, and who he worked with as he creates four of his most famous plays - Henry V, Julius Caesar, As You Like It, and Hamlet.

Unravels the mystery of when and why so many people began to question whether Shakespeare wrote the plays (among them such leading writers and artists as Sigmund Freud, Henry James, Mark Twain, Helen Keller, Orson Welles and Sir Derek Jacobi).

From the author of 1599, a fresh perspective on the history of the United States - and a timely reminder of Shakespeare's indelible influence.

From the 'Winner of Winners' of the Baillie Gifford Prize, a timely and dramatic story of a utopian American experiment, and the self-serving politicians that engineered its downfall.

"An intimate portrait of one of Shakespeare's most inspired moments: the year of King Lear, Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra. 1606, while a very good year for Shakespeare, is a fraught one for England. Plague returns. There is surprising resistance to the new king's desire to turn England and Scotland into a united Britain. And fear and uncertainty sweep the land and expose deep divisions in the aftermath of the failed terrorist attack that came to be known as the Gunpowder Plot. James Shapiro deftly demonstrates how these extraordinary plays responded to the tumultuous events of this year, events that in unexpected ways touched upon Shakespeare's own life ... [and] profoundly changes and enriches our experience of his plays--Publisher's description.

Jak se z talentovaného dramatika a básníka stal jeden z největších autorů v dějinách literatury? V Shapirově nebývale živém líčení můžeme sledovat, co Shakespeare v roce 1599 četl, jaké hry viděl a s kým spolupracoval, stejně tak jako dějinné události, které hýbaly alžbětinskou Anglií. Výsledek už známe: v tomto událostmi nabitém roce Shakespeare investuje do nového divadla Globe a po večerech (!) napíše hned čtyři hry – Jindřicha V., Julia Caesara, Jak se vám líbí a konečně Hamleta – snad nejobdivovanější hru všech dob. S tím, jak se dozvíme, co k jejich vzniku vedlo, se prohloubí i naše porozumění a při příští návštěvě divadla uvidíme své oblíbené postavy zase v jiném světle.