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William Shakespeare is just eighteen when he marries Anne Hathaway, eight years his senior. Anne, who bears a son soon after the marriage, is plain and not particularly bright – but her love for Will is undeniable. Talented and fiercely ambitious, Will’s scintillating genius soon makes him the toast of Elizabethan London. While he basks in the flattery his great reputation affords him, Anne lives a lonely life in Stratford, far away from the glittering world of her husband.

This highly evocative account of the life of the young William Shakespeare begins the trilogy which continues with The Cleopatra Boy and concludes with A House of Women.

The Author: Eric Malpass was born in Derby in 1910 and worked in a bank after leaving school, but his firm ambition was to become a novelist and he wrote in his spare time for many years.

His first book, Morning’s at Seven, was published to wide acclaim. With an intuitive eye for the quirkiness of family life, his novels are full of wry comments and perceptive observations. This exquisite sense of detail has led to the filming of three of his books. His most engaging character is Gaylord Pentecost – a charming seven-year-old who observes the strange adult world with utter incredulity.

Eric Malpass also wrote biographical novels, carefully researched and highly evocative of the period. Among these is Beyond Human Fraility, the moving story of Thomas Cranmer. With his amusing and lovingly drawn details of life in rural England, Malpass’ books typify a certain whimsical Englishness – a fact which undoubtedly contributes to his popularity in Europe.

Married with a family, Eric Malpass lived in Long Eaton, near Nottingham, until his death in 1996.

318 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 5, 2013

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Eric Malpass

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
124 reviews1 follower
March 3, 2023
Der Klappentext und der Titel lassen vermuten, dass es sich um eine Liebesgeschichte handelt. Das ist nicht der Fall. Es ist eine fiktionalisierte Biographie von William Shakespeare, in der natürlich auch seine Frau vorkommt. Niemand in der Geschichte ist wirklich sympathisch und es passiert auch nicht wirklich viel. Aber ich hab einiges über England um 1600 gelernt.
Profile Image for Anduine.
63 reviews
July 6, 2020
A lovingly written trilogy about how it could have happend
Profile Image for Ralitsa.
23 reviews1 follower
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March 9, 2014
A wonderful story about the challenges of living with genius. It's hard for both the talented Shakespeare and those who love him. He's torn between love for his family and the need to create art, which is overpowering. Yet he deeply loves his family, is devastated by the loss of his son Hamnet and full of regrets as a father and spouse. Shakespeare is lucky to be married to older and wiser Anne Hathaway who is able to realize that she can never fully know him, just love him. She herself is a tragic character who lives a life of loneliness in service of a brilliant man she loves but can't fully be with.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews