"David Bevington’s knowledge of Shakespeare is formidable. In this wonderful new book, Bevington uses the “seven ages of man” speech from As You Like It to weave together Shakespeare’s plays and poems with what is known of Shakespeare’s life." Barbara Mowat, Folger Shakespeare Institute [of the first edition] "This is a book from […] one of the great Shakespeare scholars of his generation. The book is well-written, at once lively and learned, engaging and informative. It is perfectly designed to help non-specialist readers enjoy Shakespeare's plays better and yet it is also rich with insights that will challenge the specialist reader." David Scott Kastan, Columbia University [of the first edition] "Recommended for all public and academic libraries in need of fresh introductory materials on Shakespeare." Library Journal [of the first edition] "Essential. A must for lower- and upper-division undergraduates; a pleasure for graduate students through faculty and for general readers." Choice [of the first edition] "[This book] is sensible and persuasive in its linking of criticism and biography. Its primary audience is students, who will find the treatments of individual plays excellent as stand-alone studies as well as part of a larger argument." English Association Journal for Teachers of English "Objective and personal, too, the book is likely to be useful for long to come" Notes and Queries