Craig Huston makes a strong claim as he presents evidence, turns inconsistencies to shreds, and develops logical conclusions to support his claim that William Shakespeare was the pseudonym used by the 17th Earl of Oxford and not the William Shakespeare of Stratford and "second best bed" fame. He makes one wonder how one has been fooled for so long and why the "hoax" still persists. I saw and heard the author when he came to Guilford College in 1992 to speak about this book. He was as convincing then as he is in this book.

I admit, I've read and re-read Shakespeare, but never quite got the rhythm of the language - the meaning of the prose. I understood the basic plot, and with the help of teachers (whether in High School or college) I understood the basic meaning.

BUT after I discovered what a performance of Shakespeare could do...I was hooked. I've every play that comes to town - and now I'm hooked on these audiobooks.

Listening to Shakespeare (and you can listen anywhere - I recently enjoyed As You Like It as I painted my kitchen) is a fantastic experience - perfect listening for fans of the Bard - or anyone, like me, who knew they should be enjoying Shakespeare and yet struggled with the writing.

These Caedmon Audios - performed by The Shakespeare Recording Society - have all exceeded expectation. I highly recommend.

Shakespeare was meant to be heard, afterall.

This is a non-fiction account of Shakespearean drama performed before an audience of carefully selected patient/inmates within the walls of England's oldest asylum for the criminally insane. Indeed, it is a most compelling compilation of true tales told by the actors, patients, and psychotherapists. When The Royal Shakespeare Company came to Broadmoor Hospital, the epistemological obstacles normally separating art and science were obliterated! From reading this work, one may know the dramatic power of the literary metaphor to effect a medical metamorphosis!

This book attempts to break the mould of the classical mythsand legends surrounding the life of William Shakespeare. Itdemonstrates that very little is known about the man himself and there is a surprising dearth of information regarding all aspects of his life. It delves into the cauldron of early post-reformation Britain and succinctly describes how William Shakespeare may have had a much darker side to his character than is traditionally described in most classic texts. A fascinating read for anyone intersted in history, literature, biography or simply Shakespeare himself.

While making a compelling case for the Earl of Oxford as the writer of the Shakespeare plays, Warren Hope and Kim Holston have also provided an exemplary history of the Shakespeare authorship controversy. What's amazing is that DeVere's name hadn't become prominent in this controversy until the first part of the 20th century. Yet, the ground under the Stratford actor, Will Shakspere, had been eroding for nearly a century. The buildup to the Oxfordian-Stratfordian struggle (now taking place in the pages of Harper's magazine) is both dramatically and lucidly conveyed in this work. I was agnostic on this issue for many years; the combination of The Shakespeare Controversy and other research convinces me that DeVere's time has come. I highly recommend this book for its meticulous scholarship and excellent writing.

I used this book as a source for my term paper which was on shakespeare. I wanted to get essays written by people during the time the plays were performed. This was a great book with lots of essays written by people from all different centuries since the plays have been published. It was an easy book to use...just like a dictionary. All you basically need to find out if the volume number which you can find out quite easily. It was a great book to use and from now on it's the first one I think about using.

Worth it's weight in gold! At last, a work we can count on to bring a much needed and missed perspective. The editors have done a tremendous job and deserve our thanks. A real treasure.

For actors who find themselves preparing for auditions for casting directors who want a melange of materials to show off their talents, this book does the trick. Monologues easiy categorized by length and topic, tragic to comic, it has made my life easier. And anyone who makes my life easier is a sidekick of mine. Thanks to the author for seeing a need to be filled and satisfying that need with insight that only one who has been there can truly know.

I've been looking for a book like this for a long time. It's a great resource for actors! Really has helped me with auditions.

I am a sophomore attending Marquette University, and for my British Literature Class, we had to write a 7-10 pg paper for our final research project on any work we covered in class.

I chose Othello. The purpose of the assignment was to pick a topic related to the work and find various interpretations that would help you prove your point. Scott does a very nice job of collecting various reputable authors in his discussions of each play. From what I could tell, he chose professors and esteemed writers for all the essays I read.

I also liked how he gave a brief synopsis of each play before the essays. He also makes sure that there are in-depth character sketches for each main character and descriptions of the main themes in the plays.

I picked up this book from our library and I enjoyed his collections on Othello. Therefore, since I believe it is a valuable resource, I have decided to purchase the book myself.

I recommend it highly as a source to any student.