To be or Not to be: A Celebration of Shakespeare's 400-Year Legacy by Liz Evers

by Liz Evers

A fresh, new look at Shakespeare's work, showing how and why it remains such an integral part of popular culture and the English language. The book covers everything from the characters, essential plotlines and the most famous quotes to illuminating information of the playwright himself.

Genres: Nonfiction, Classics

Hardcover

First published October 1, 2010

About the author

Liz Evers is a writer and editor who has worked in the publishing industry in the UK and Ireland for many years and is the author of several popular reference books on diverse subjects, from Shakespeare to horology. She currently works as a researcher for the Dictionary of Irish Biography and is a graduate of University College Dublin and Dublin City University.

Reviews

[Nellie Colberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a thrill to read, well written and definitely something I'm coming back to when reading Shakespeare. Good introduction for someone as clueless as I am 😆 but I can imagine it being repetitive for readers familiar with Shakespeare.

[Vero · Rating 3 out of 5]

I suppose it's a nice introduction for those not yet familiar with the Bard. I haven't learned anything new, though. Still, I enjoyed the writing style :)

[Chris Chanona · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book to dip into. Lots of biographical details but also lots of details about the plays and how they were written. I particularly liked the complete alphabetical list of characters at the end, with details of who they were and in which play. e.g. 'Banquo – an army captain in Macbeth who meets the three witches and hears their prophecies about Macbeth’s rise to power and that of his own sons. He is later murdered but returns as a ghost to haunt Macbeth.'

I think this would make a great reference book, especially when in book form (I read a doc format). A good buy for a gift as well.

I read an ARC but would recommend it wholeheartedly as I will look out for the book when it is published for myself.

[Rachel N · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice introduction to the life and works of Shakespeare for anyone looking for a handy little reference book. There’s a short biography, sections on words and phrases owed to him (very interesting), a glossary of characters and brief descriptions of each of the plays, so this provides an excellent bluffer’s guide as well as an introduction!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

[Letizia Loi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Utilissimo per un ripasso veloce su Shakespeare, soprattutto per le sintesi di tutti i suoi lavori. Include molte curiosità e tutte le parole e modi di dire che il buon vecchio Will ha regalato alla lingua inglese. E' scritto in uno stile sarcastico e conciso, che rende la lettura leggera e divertente. Nel complesso, è un saggio molto carino.

[Alanna Fowler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is interesting as someone who doesn’t know much about Shakespeare - I can imagine looking at this book closer when an opportunity to discuss the plats arises. I know someone who works at the globe so I can see the day coming! It’s a really simple easy look at his life and the plays.
Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review.

[Catriona · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book had good summaries of the plays and lots of good quotes - correcting misquotes, words we get from Shakespeare etc, and is undoubtedly great as a basic introduction to the life and works of the Bard. However, I found this on p. 69 in relation to the oft misquoted 'Now is the winter of our discontent/Made glorious summer by this sun of York' and it really ticked me off.

'...the metaphorical winter referred to has been banished by this sun [son] of York - meaning Richard, Duke of Gloucester - soon to be King Richard III.'

No. The 'sun'/son referred to is Edward IV, one of whose royal badges was a sun in splendour. If you're going to correct misquotes, make sure you have your facts straight about your corrected misquotes. I know this is an extract from one page, and it's a small thing, but as a huge Shakespeare fan (specifically of the First Tetralogy) and medieval historian, this really bothered me.

[Sophie Errington · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. This book is good for a brief description or cheat sheet to Shakespeare 's plays but it does not give a lot of the history aspect that I was expecting in the book. I expected more of an insight to the playwright himself and the theories surrounding him, his life and his works but instead you get a brief description of every play, a list of every character, some examples of misquotes, and words we get from Shakespeare. The book would be good for an English literature student in school but not necessarily for any other type of audience. The writing structure of the book was easy to understand and was well structured separating the plays into periods of Shakespeare's life and having intermission chapter between each period to focus on something completely different and somewhat specific about Shakespeare 's plays or writing style so the reader doesn't get bored and shut off. It's a good book but not an amazing book

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an excellent introduction to the works of Shakespeare. It includes brief synopses of all of his plays, information about characters, and lists of words and phrases which were coined by Shakespeare.

It's not really suitable for anyone wanting to do an in-depth study of Shakespeare or his plays, but for people who are reading or watching his plays for the first time, and who want to know more, it's idea. It is written in an amusing and engaging way. I enjoyed this book a lot!

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I noticed this in the Works whilst I was buying some other bits and thought, why not!

I was dubious at first, but it has turned out to be a good little collection of quotes and facts for all things Shakespeare, and actually has some notes I've not read before. Useful for a quote bank!

It could be more intellectual, as the biography part is a bit basic and child-like in writing, but definitely good for GCSE or A-level notation.

[Amber Hao]

A very useful piece to all Shakespeare lovers :) A must have for English teachers and actors...