Shakespeare's Restless World: An Unexpected History in Twenty Objects

Description

The Elizabethan age was a tumultuous time, when long-cherished certainties were crumbling and life was exhilaratingly uncertain. Shakespeare's Restless World uncovers the extraordinary stories behind twenty objects from the period to re-create an age at once distant and yet surprisingly familiar. From knife crime to belief in witches, religious battles to the horizons of the New World, Neil MacGregor brings the past to life in a fresh, unexpected portrait of a dangerous and dynamic era. 'Fascinating . . . filled with anecdotes and insights, eerie, funny, poignant and grotesque . . . another brilliant vindication of MacGregor's understanding of physical objects to enter deep into our fore fathers' mental and spiritual world.' Christopher Hart, Sunday Times 'Enjoyable and intriguing, an absorbing evocation . . . he draws us into the minds of the Elizabethan and Jacobean audience. Next time you see one of the plays reading this book will make those first audiences seem real to you.' Peter Lewis, Daily Mail 'How gripping are these tales from a lost world. And what a world Shakespeare's was - adventurous, melancholy, rich and plagued by beggary, courteous and quarrelsome, sceptical and credulous.' Daily Telegraph 'Elegant, informative . . . provides stimulating insights.' Anne Somerset, Spectator

Neil MacGregor has been Director of the British Museum since August 2002. He was Director of the National Gallery in London from 1987 to 2002. His celebrated books include A History of the World in 100 Objects, now translated into more than a dozen languages and one of the top-selling titles ever published by Penguin Press, Shakespeare's Restless World and Germany: Memories of a Nation.