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Who Was . . . ? Series

Who Was William Shakespeare?

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The beloved plays of Shakespeare are still produced everywhere, yet the life of the world's most famous playwright remains largely a mystery.

Young Will left the town of Stratford to pursue theater in London, where his work eventually thrived and made him a famous and wealthy man.

With black-and-white illustrations that include a diagram of the famous Globe theater, Celeste Davidson Mannis puts together the pieces of Shakespeare's life and work for young readers.

105 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2006

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About the author

Celeste Davidson Mannis

7 books8 followers


Celeste Davidson Mannis, the award winning author of several books for children, is convinced she has the best job in the world. "Writing for children is one of my greatest joys. Children are wonderfully open to new ideas. My goal is to explore aspects of our world - its people, cultures, history, and natural wonders - in a way that fuels their amazing intelligence and curiosity. Knowledge is power, and it's my fondest wish that through my books I can help provide children with a sense of their own potential and unique place in the greater world community."

Born in Los Angeles, California, Celeste now resides there with her much loved husband and daughters. She promises to go grocery shopping soon! Celeste holds undergraduate degrees in History and The History of Art, as well as a Masters in Business Administration, all from the University of Southern California. She has also studied British History and Renaissance Art History at the University of London.

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5 stars
496 (37%)
4 stars
460 (34%)
3 stars
278 (21%)
2 stars
58 (4%)
1 star
27 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 145 reviews
Profile Image for Susan Morris.
1,580 reviews20 followers
June 6, 2018
This is a great series to introduce upper elementary students to famous people. And even adults can learn something! Did you know a flag was flown outside the Globe theater to indicate there was a performance - black flag for a tragedy, white for comedy, & red for history. (Library)
Profile Image for Jillian.
2,119 reviews108 followers
January 13, 2012
Now, I'm going to start this review by saying that I don't hate the Who Was series. I think they are one of the better children's biography series out there. It's hard to get young kids interested in history, and they do a pretty good job at it.

That being said, I wouldn't have even published this if I had been them. First off, writing any kind of anything about William Shakespeare is risky. There aren't many details about his life, and the ones we do know are questionable at best. Add that to the fact that this is a children's biography and therefore devoid of any of the juicy gossip that would make it interesting, which equals a boring and pointless books. Kids of this age level aren't going to care about Shakespeare, and those kids who do are going to walk right pass this and find something better. Definitely a miss for this series. Word of advice for the Who Is series: Stay away from anyone who lived before the 1700s unless you have really good information!
Profile Image for Hilary.
562 reviews16 followers
August 8, 2022
My son and I read this together. It was assigned by his new 3rd grade teacher as part of his summer work. Whoever wrote this knows exactly how 8 year old little boys think. Spending a few pages on the plague, spending a few pages on the court and kings and queens, and sort of skimming over more of the details of Shakespeare's actual life - my son LOVED it. Chapters were the perfect length for his reading level and it was easy to read in 2-3 days and held his interest the entire time. This is a great read for that age to get them interested!!!!
21 reviews1 follower
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April 1, 2019
The book “Who Was William Shakespeare”, by Celeste Davidson Mannis is a good book that was pretty entertaining and had some good information on William Shakespeare. The book talks about how William was an actor and theater owner. What he’s known for is having one of the greatest playwrights of all time which is “Romeo and Juliet.” The book talks about William’s life from when he was baptized because his birthday is unknown to when he sadly died. In the book, it talks about William’s achievements like getting married and having three kids which then led him shortly after to make some great plays like “The Two Gentlemen of Verona” and “The Taming of the Shrew.” William’s life was very simple and was just really well known for his plays as I mentioned before. He had a lot of plays. To be honest, I didn’t really find this book as interesting as other books in this series. I do recommend this series though to people who like biographies and people who need some information on William Shakespeare.
Profile Image for Kristi Clemow.
917 reviews13 followers
April 10, 2022
I like how the different books tie together - definitely see how kids would like to keep reading and find the other books related to the one they are reading.
Top 5 things I learned/found interesting:
- Mary was pregnant when they got married (and 26 years old with an 18 year old)
- Queen Elizabeth loved the theater - perhaps that emboldened Shakespeare to write the kind of plays he did
- The first theater he partially owned was on land that they didn't - the landlord demanded too high of a rent - so they took the theater down and moved it to another plot of land
- Essentially everything he wrote was not an original story - which was common in that time
- The last play he wrote paralleled his desire to leave the stage - or at least it seems it that way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Kelly Hohenstern.
481 reviews6 followers
July 12, 2021
Biography I read with my daughter for a school project. Well written and informative. I love how this series states the historical facts, yet adds enough interesting tidbits to keep it fun and entertaining for kids.
59 reviews
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May 15, 2025
This was a fine, accessible biography of Shakespeare’s life with good summaries of his works.
Profile Image for Alexandra.
4 reviews1 follower
August 20, 2020
The book "Who was William Shakespeare?" Is a book full of information about the life of the famous playwright, actor, and theater director named William Shakespeare. A book that tells us about a well-known personality in the world, whose existence has remained shrouded in mystery to this day. I highly recommend this book because it offers a lot of information that you would not normally find on the internet, and the illustrations are wonderful.
Profile Image for David.
1,630 reviews174 followers
October 6, 2020
Who Was William Shakespeare? by Celeste Davidson Mannis is one of the books in the award-winning "Who Was/Is..." series targeted for the youth market that provides an overview about famous people and places in world history. This one details the biographical history of William Shakespeare noting that there are periods of time where little is known about him. The author also lists a number of theories about this famous author, playwright, and poet including a very controversial one that he actually didn't write his famous works but rather took credit for an anonymous author. I have just watched a film by that title that focuses on that theory that Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford was the true author who published anonymously through Shakespeare. This was a minor point in the book which then moves on with the assumption that Shakespeare was indeed the true author. Either way, it is a fascinating story.
5 reviews
January 21, 2016
In the beginning, this book talks about his life as a child. Then, it talks about his life as an actor and about all of his plays. In the end, it talks about how he died, where he died, and when he died. This book was very interesting and entrancing to read. That is very shocking to here from me because I really don't like biography's, but I loved this one! I recommend this book to people that love history and William Shakespeare. I rate this book a 5 because it was really to the point on William Shakespeare's life. It was also very helpful with my report. Thanks for reading!!!
Profile Image for Brenna Mack.
5 reviews
January 20, 2016
Do you ever wonder who was the greatest play write ever?Well, I know the answer: William Shakespeare. Now you know he is a play write but do you want to know even more about William Shakespeare? Than read Who was William Shakespeare? Join Shakespeare on a fantastic journey through his life. Learn about his childhood, his family, and how he made his famous plays. I would recommend this book to people who love the Who is/was series. I love this book because I love learning about history and I love acting. I would give this book five out of five stars because it is a really good book.
Profile Image for Felipe Alfaro.
53 reviews1 follower
September 19, 2017
Good book!
Nice to have an overview of Shakespeare's titles and their plots.
The character of Shylock and the Shakespearean origin of many English phrases like "wild goose chase" was particularly interesting.
Profile Image for Jennifer Siddiqui.
84 reviews106 followers
September 15, 2015
I learned some very interesting things about Shakespeare that made me appreciate his work.
Profile Image for Refal Khan.
208 reviews7 followers
September 13, 2020
سلسلة الكتب هذه ماتعه بسيطة مليئة بالمعلومات مناسبة للصغار والكبار
Profile Image for David Poltorak.
427 reviews4 followers
December 10, 2022
Never being a big fan of Shakespeare, this brief biography made me appreciate his work a bit more

Learned:
-hundreds of words and phrases were coined by Shakespeare (e.g. cold-blooded, love letter, puppy dog, zany, knock knock knock! Who’s there?, too much of a good thing, wild goose chase, etc.)
-he was born in Stratford, England in 1564
-his dad was a glove maker (and belts, purses, aprons)
-he married Anne Hathaway when he was 18 and she was 26
-he fathered Susanna then twins — Hamnet and Judith
-soon after the twins were born, he left Stratford and the family for England (famine was severe and they needed money)
-he became a playwright and wrote in the new poetic style called blank verse which doesn’t rhyme but has rhythm; Shakespeare specifically mastered iambic pentameter (if clapping, every other beat would be loud and this pattern repeats five times in each line)
-his plays were bold because they spoke of what happened in his country and time rather somewhere distant like most plays
-his characters make his plays interesting, making them as complicated as real people
-tragedy, comedy, history — he could write anything, and the audiences loved it
-the Black Death (bubonic plague) swept London 1592-1594 claiming 200,000+ lives (and almost a third of Europe in 3 years) and shut down theaters; people fled the city for the countryside
-not being able to conduct plays, he then became taken seriously as a poet, writing 154 sonnets over the years (14 line poems with complicated rhyme patterns)
-theaters re-opened, and he joined an acting group called the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, with whom he’d remain for the rest of his career
-he helped his father John get a coat of arms (to move up in social class and be thought of as gentlemen, based on family background and noble deeds, sometimes very expensive)
-he continued writing great plays, constantly showing that nothing in life is clear and simple
-his greatest comic role he created was John Falstaff, a lying, cheating, drunken old knight
-the theater him and the LCM owned was on land they didn’t own, so they carried all the parts of the theater and rebuilt it and called it The Globe
-on play days they would raise flags: black for tragedy, white for comedy, and red for history plays
-when Queen Elizabeth died, she chose King James of Scotland to succeed her; he changed the LCM name to the King’s Men
-in 1610 after more than 20 years in London (and sending money to the family), Shakespeare returned home to Stratford; he died in 1616 at the age of 52
Profile Image for JenBsBooks.
2,622 reviews71 followers
August 28, 2025
I've seen many of these "Who Was ..." series out there, with the BIG HEADs on the cover. This is the first one I've given a try. I found a hard copy I picked up for my Little Free Library (#lfl182597), and I like to read books first if possible. Also this month, I'd been reading Hamnet for book club, and By Any Other Name, so I was on a small Shakespeare streak. I was able to borrow the audiobook from the library, and it was a quick listen. In text, there are quite a few pictures/illustrations, which add to the understanding, so I might recommend text over audio.

While this book did provide some interesting background information ... it seemed much/most of it was then given the qualified "but we really don't KNOW if this is true, we actually don't know anything for sure" ...

This covered more of Shakespeare's early life (although we don't know much of it for SURE). The second chapter is "Marriage and Children" (which is the main focus of Hamnet). Basic info of the plague, the theatre of the time, some of Shakespeare's works. This book does touch on the fact that some people question if Shakespeare did write all the plays he is credited with (... the premise of By Any Other Name is that he did not). The Earl of Southhampton is mentioned (gets a picture) ... another integral part of By Any Other Name. Information on The Globe Theater, Queen Elizabeth. I liked the TIMELINE included at the end (in text, not in audio) just to get a more organized picture of the order of the plays, and world events.
Profile Image for PrincessLhala.
438 reviews1 follower
September 7, 2024
Book Review: Who Was William Shakespeare? (5 Stars)

"Who Was William Shakespeare?" is an enchanting introduction to the life of the legendary playwright that left me utterly captivated and eager to explore his works. The way the author weaves together Shakespeare's fascinating biography with insights into his timeless plays and sonnets is nothing short of magical. I found myself particularly drawn to the idea that this man, who lived over 400 years ago, crafted stories and characters that still resonate with our modern lives. The vivid descriptions of his theatrical world, complete with the hustle and bustle of the Globe Theatre, made me feel like I was witnessing his genius firsthand. Even though I haven't read any of his plays yet, this book ignited a spark of curiosity in me, compelling me to dive into his masterpieces soon. Each chapter felt like a delightful glimpse into his creative genius and the historical context of his time. I appreciated how the book highlighted Shakespeare's wit, humor, and profound understanding of human nature, making me realize just how relevant his works are today. Overall, I can't recommend this delightful read enough—it's a perfect gateway to the enchanting world of Shakespeare, and I'm now more excited than ever to experience his literary brilliance!
8 reviews
November 20, 2017
The Who Was? series is an excellent way to teach students about a variety of people--both living and deceased. I chose to read Who Was William Shakespeare? because my eighth grade students read Romeo and Juliet at the end of the year. We always do an "introduction to Shakespeare" activity, but I was curious about the information included in this particular book.

Who Was William Shakespeare? is a quick one-hundred page read with an abundance of black and white illustrations throughout. It details Shakespeare's life from his birth, to his influence in theater, and ultimately to his death. It's written on a third grade level, but I would choose excerpts to share with my eighth graders as background information. I especially like the inclusion of words/phrases that Shakespeare coined and pictures of the Globe Theater.

This book is a WOW! book for me because it covered Shakespeare's life in a story-like way. It's playful and whimsical in places, but the content is the same as the higher level articles about Shakespeare that I've used in the past. This style would engage students in Shakespeare, and I think the effect will be that they are more interested in tackling and understanding his plays! I'm excited to try it out this school year.
Profile Image for Andrew.
2,330 reviews71 followers
January 16, 2019
You think you know everything about people you've researched?
I'm always pleasantly surprised and impressed by the "Who was/Is?" series of J Bios.
As someone who has worked on and studied a lot about the Bard, not only is this biography about William a great intro for kids, it also asks all of the unanswered questions about his life that we'll never know, and throws in some info for people like me (who thinks that they may know everything about the bard) just to give you more insight into this legendary person.

The book does a great job of addressing issues during the time like Queen Elizabeth, the plague and the disrespect of acting troupes, religion, war and politics of the time. It doesn't hold back, but if you've ever read up on those subjects during the 1500's, they don't share everything either. I do like its honesty and not sugarcoating the issues of Shakespeare's times.

There's also a great timeline at the back of all of these books: 1 that focuses on his life and works, and 1 that focuses on world history moments of his life, which was cool too.

The illustrations in each book are also very nice and help kids better understand.
Profile Image for Alicia.
8,481 reviews150 followers
December 20, 2016
So this isn't very biographical, instead it reads more like an annotation of all of his plays and poetry with an occasional tidbit of speculation about his life, family, finances, and character. Essentially it was too early to have anything written about Shakespeare with an air of mystery still surrounding whether Christopher Marlowe wrote everything Shakespeare claimed to write.

What it does instead is aligns what was happening in real life to some of what ended up in the plays and how they were performed. I had even just learned about bearbaiting in another book so to see that as a form of entertainment wasn't surprising, so it's nice to know that I do learn things!

I will definitely check out more in this series knowing that it seems similar in content to the Wicked History series in that they are providing some well-researched facts without being overwhelmed by a 400-page book instead delivering the basics about a person and the time period when they existed.
21 reviews
April 3, 2019
I think that “ Who was William Shakespeare” by Celeste Davidson Mannis is a great book recommended for people 8 years and up. This book is about William Shakespeare’s life. William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and then at the age of 20 he marries Anne Hathaway and has a child just a year later and have twins the year after as well. Then he creates 3 plays including the legendary Romeo and Juliet. One of his twin daughter died in 1596 at the age of 11. Although one of his children died that didn’t stop him from creating 3 more plays and then sadly his father dies. Well, even after sad events he continues to write 3 more plays. His eldest daughter gets married and he publishes his sonnets two years later. He published his last poems before the theater he performed in burned down. He dies 3 years later in 1616.
Profile Image for Lindsy C..
618 reviews5 followers
February 5, 2021
I read this aloud to my Jr. High class as an introduction to Shakespeare, prior to our study of Romeo & Juliet. We were able to read it over the course of 2 days (approx 40min each class), but that allowed for minimal discussion. It was simplistic, but gave a nice overview of Shakespeare's life & works. It also was able to describe what Elizabethian England was like (politically, socially, economically, etc) and even described hardships encountered during the era (such as famine, disease, The Globe burning, etc). Finally, it incorporates brief descriptions/summaries into the narration that introduce reader to specific Shakespeare plays and what they were about. I would definitely use this book as a resource in my teaching, again. And, it would also be suitable for any young readers with an interest in historical figures.
Profile Image for Emily.
821 reviews43 followers
August 25, 2024
This was a very informative installment of the Who Was/What Was/Where Was series. I have now read at least a dozen of these, and this one could easily be used as a quick reference book for fans of Shakespeare. I kept a notepad and took some notes as I read so I have my own fact sheet about Shakespeare now that I'm done. Clearly, adults and those who have read Shakespeare can still take away some information. It's interesting that we still don't know exactly how many works Shakespeare wrote or even when he was born. Sometimes technology can't even help us when we are looking so far back in time.

I did have one complaint; the illustrations were not my favorite. I understand the illustrator was going for that aesthetic to fit the times, but there was no definition or distinction to the drawings as a result and were not as crisp or clear to see what is going on.
Profile Image for Lucy.
18 reviews
August 4, 2019
Okay, so I didn't enjoy it a lot. When I think about books I rate 3 stars, I actually enjoyed them but- this books taught me a lot. I didn't exactly enjoy it, but I did learn a lot about Shakespeare's plays, and just his life in general. I'm auditioning for midsummer nights dream, and Romeo and Juliet. So hopes that this will help. But why I didn't enjoy it was because, it is for younger readers. Not my age... So I'm sure it would help with them. It did help with me too personally. Hence the sentence above. But it also repeated a lot of sayings, such as "Which was ended in a tragedy." Which obviously minimises the grotesque parts for younger readers. But, I was surprised that they spoke about Hamlet thinking about, suicide. To finish my favourite Shakespeare sentence...
"Wear your heart on your sleeve."
33 reviews
November 29, 2022
This book is for a 3rd-5th grade classroom and I used to love this book when I was in upper elementary school. These books go into detail about how the person grew up, how they got to be who they are, their career, and how they passed away. These books are very interesting to read and are easy enough to read for younger students. They go into enough detail to be informative and helpful, but not too much detail that kids won't be interested in them. These books are a series and they have them for a lot of historical figures. The illustrations on the cover makes them stand out too because of the caricature style.
I would implement these books into my classroom by having my students pick a historical figure and then having them do a small presentation on the person.
Profile Image for Mark W..
30 reviews
July 1, 2024
I read this to see if the series would be good for my nephew. Afterwards, I think it would be great to read to him and for him to read by himself in a few years. It has a lot of introductory information, and while I feel that it can be light on specifics, this is probably a benefit for a young reader. The text feels like it has just enough information to introduce a reader to new concepts like the Spanish Armada, the Black Death, and the Tudor and Stuart monarchies without allowing him or her to get lost in the minutia. My expectations are always going to be skewed, for better or worse, by all the Shakespeare scholarship I've read. I can't look at this book as a novice, but I like to think that if I could, I would be enthralled. We'll have to see what my nephew thinks.
5 reviews
April 29, 2019
I think it was a good quick read. Some good things about this book - Very informational, I liked how the author talked about the time period and how Shakespeare grew up. To be more specific, the author really went into detail about Shakespeare's life and how he got about writing plays. I liked how she described and talked about the setting and the lifestyle of his.
A thing I wish the author went into more about the lifestyle before, but to be fair, I learned that there was a time in his life where he didn't have a record, and nobody really knows where he went.
Overall I think this is a good nonfiction read, and would suggest it to anyone who wants an informational light read.
91 reviews1 follower
June 11, 2018
This is the perfect little chapter book to get my students to understand who William Shakespeare was. While I realize elementary aged students usually do not read Shakespear, it is important to know who he was, the writings of plays and poetry he produced are legendary. This book aught me a lot about him as a person, a father, and husband. As well, it taught me how he got his start, and though there is so much we do not know about him, this did give me much information. Short chapters, and very attention keeping! I really liked it!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 145 reviews

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