Shakespeare's Library: Unlocking the Greatest Mystery in Literature

by Stuart Kells

Overview

A tantalizing true story of one of literature’s most enduring enigmas is at the heart of this “lively, even sprightly book” (Michael Dirda, The Washington Post)—the quest to find the personal library of the world’s greatest writer.

Millions of words of scholarship have been expended on the world’s most famous author and his work. And yet a critical part of the puzzle, Shakespeare’s library, is a mystery. For four centuries people have searched for it: in mansions, palaces and libraries; in riverbeds, sheep pens and partridge coops; and in the corridors of the mind. Yet no trace of the bard’s manuscripts, books or letters has ever been found.

The search for Shakespeare’s library is much more than a treasure hunt. Knowing what the Bard read informs our reading of his work, and it offers insight into the mythos of Shakespeare and the debate around authorship. The library’s fate has profound implications for literature, for national and cultural identity, and for the global Shakespeare industry. It bears on fundamental principles of art, identity, history, meaning and truth.

Unfolding the search like the mystery story that it is, acclaimed author Stuart Kells follows the trail of the hunters, taking us through different conceptions of the library and of the man himself. Entertaining and enlightening, Shakespeare’s Library is a captivating exploration of one of literature’s most enduring enigmas.

"An engaging and provocative contribution to the unending world of Shakespeariana . . . An enchanting work that bibliophiles will savor and Shakespeare fans adore." ―Kirkus Reviews

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781640091849
Publisher:	Catapult
Publication date:	04/02/2019
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Stuart Kells is an author and book–trade historian. His 2015 history of Penguin Books, Penguin and the Lane Brothers, won the prestigious Ashurst Business Literature Prize. Rare, his critically acclaimed biography of Kay Craddock—the first female president of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers—was published in 2011. An authority on rare books, Kells has written and published on many aspects of print culture and the book world.

Table of Contents

CONTENTS

Introduction

Part 1
1. William the Conqueror
2. The Mystery
3. The Quarry
4. The Search Begins
5. The Master Investigator
6. The Bibliomaniac
7. The League of Radical Gentlemen
8. The Mystery Deepens

Part 2
9. The Musikbibliothek
10. Alias William Jones
11. Emperor and Grand Lama
12. The Conspiracy
13. The Bumpkin
14. The Inbetweener

Part 3
15. Bibliotheca Mitchelliana
16. Bibliotheca Jonsoniana
17. Closet Games
18. All Perfect Things
19. A Writer’s Library

Epilogue

Editorial Reviews

01/14/2019

Historian Kells (The Library) delivers a fascinating examination of a persistent literary mystery: William Shakespeare’s library. Through careful research, Kells constructs a narrative around the centuries-long search for this elusive holy grail for scholars, interwoven with anecdotes of the author’s roguish escapades and comments on the ongoing debate about the Shakespeare oeuvre’s true authorship. Citing records and studies from the 16th century to the modern day, Kells discusses various potential clues uncovered by scholars, such as a 1570 Bible filled with “more than a thousand underlinings and notes,” many relevant to Shakespeare plays. In addition, Kells includes his own interpretations of what can be gleaned from Shakespeare’s writing, such as the playwright’s “close familiarity with the physicality of books and the mechanics of their production.” He also relies heavily on the legwork of John Fry, a 19th-century bookseller whose efforts uncovered many primary sources for the plays, such as the manual Practice of the Use of the Rapier and Dagger; and the Honor of Honorable Quarrels (stabbing, Kells notes, is “the principal cause of death” for Shakespearean characters). Shakespeare fans will surely be riveted by the new information brought to light in Kells’s rich literary survey. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Shakespeare's Library

"Shakespeare’s Library is unquestionably a lively, even sprightly book." —Michael Dirda, The Washington Post

"Riveting . . . To read, or not to read? Here, there’s no question!" —Booklist (starred review)

"Historian Kells (The Library) delivers a fascinating examination of a persistent literary mystery . . . Shakespeare fans will surely be riveted by the new information brought to light in Kells’s rich literary survey." —Publishers Weekly

"It's an engaging and provocative contribution to the unending world of Shakespeariana . . . An enchanting work that bibliophiles will savor and Shakespeare fans adore." —Kirkus Reviews

"In his fascinating new book, Shakespeare’s Library: Unlocking the Greatest Mystery in Literature, Kells narrows his focus from all the libraries in the world to one library in particular. It’s perhaps the most important library that nobody’s ever seen: the personal library of William Shakespeare . . . Invigorating . . . Wonderful reading." —Steve Donoghue, The Christian Science Monitor

"Sharp and enjoyable." —Fine Books & Collections

“An excellent reevaluation of Shakespeare. Well worth reading.” —William Sutton, iloveshakespeare.com

"An entertaining and informative read that every Shakespeare scholar should make sure to have in their own library." —Ripe Good Scholar

“Fascinating . . . Libraries can save us all.” —Ben Crystal, author of Oxford Illustrated Shakespeare Dictionary

Praise for The Library

"Library holdings have helped reassure me that values associated with reason, intellect and art really do tend to survive dark ages of various kinds . . . It was therefore a pleasure to sit down among the stacks and read a new book about the history of this very subject . . . The Library lends itself to browsing, but a sequential reading reveals a larger theme . . . Abounds in fascinating tales." —The New York Times Book Review

"Excellent . . . Tracks the history of that greatest of all cultural institutions." ―The Washington Post

"A thread of wonder runs throughout these pages, weaving in and out of the subject of libraries in general—the strangeness of the idea, the intrinsic appeal of the idea."—The National

“Kells’ fervor is visible from the outset . . . Will delight and educate.” —Chicago Review of Books

“In this free–roaming history of libraries, Kells, well read, well traveled, ebullient, and erudite, relishes tales of innovation, obsession, and criminality . . . Kells’ revelatory romp through the centuries cues us to the fact that, as has so often been the case, libraries need our passionate attention and support, our advocacy, gratitude, and (given Kells’ tales of book–kissing, including Coleridge pressing his lips to his copy of Spinoza) love.” —Booklist (starred review)

“Bibliophiles will be unable to resist a book so in line with their adoration of these sacred spaces.” —Fine Books & Collections

“Brimming with strange anecdotes about a small handful of books owned by a small handful of people; lost books yielding strange surprises, from discarded condoms to misplaced dental appointment slips . . . Kells’s The Library is at its best when it recounts the stories of . . . ancient libraries, charting the accidental trails of books, and therefore ideas, through processes of translating, pirating and appropriation.” —The Conversation

“A bright, idiosyncratic tour of a book historian’s collected knowledge about libraries and bibliophilia . . . The book assembles snippets from a wide variety of disciplines into an eclectic history of libraries as cultural, political, aesthetic, literary, mnemonic, and, above all, personal phenomena dedicated to collecting and preserving the written word.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Book–trade historian Kells (Penguin and the Lane Brothers) blends scholarly expertise with sharp wit in this enjoyable history of libraries . . . Kells’s passion for this subject suffuses this pleasurable book, calling readers to understand the importance of the library’s role preserving humanity’s history and why libraries are still relevant today.” —Publishers Weekly

“This work takes readers on what can only be described as a labyrinth of traditions, facts, and vignettes that will whet the appetite of any bibliophile or lectiophile. It will appeal mostly to those who are attracted to the minutiae of libraries (although this is not an exhaustive history).” —Maria Bagshaw, Publishers Weekly

“Kells’s tale is an homage to libraries everywhere. It will delight all bibliomaniacs and those who still appreciate the tactile connection with the book, its smell, watermarks, and imperfections, and who relish in walking through stacks and library halls where many minds, illustrious or not, have wandered before them.” —EuropeNow

“If you think you know what a library is, this marvelously idiosyncratic book will make you think again. After visiting hundreds of libraries around the world and in the realm of the imagination, bibliophile and rare–book collector Stuart Kells has compiled an enchanting compendium of well–told tales and musings both on the physical and metaphysical dimensions of these multi–storied places. He takes us to Jorge Luis Borges’ fictional ‘infinite library’ and the oral libraries of Indigenous Australians, the oldest of their kind on earth, exploring how European attempts to explain the songlines of the Arrente people became ‘a hub of concentric scandals.’ As in a game of Cluedo, deaths, births, crimes and passions all take place in the library. Perhaps in an attempt to avoid such scandal, a 19th–century book of etiquette advised that the works of male and female authors should be segregated ‘unless they happen to be married.’” —Fiona Capp, The Sydney Morning Herald

“The Library is ultimately an engaging and well–written volume by a knowledgeable expert and passionate fan of the subject matter. The result is almost like poetry, a rich ode to all things books and everything we love about them. The enjoyment and engagement is so palpable you can almost taste it and Kells proves to be the perfect guide through the subject matter and history, which ironically could have been lost were it not recorded in this faithful tome. You could consider The Library the good book, except that that one was already taken . . . ” —The Australian Review

“There’s no doubt we can all learn a lot from the magnificently obsessive and eloquent Kells.” —The Australian

"The Library charts the transition between formats such as papyrus scrolls, parchment codices, moveable type, and ebooks. There are many whimsical detours along the way, and Kells even devotes a chapter to fantasy libraries . . . Kells translates his stunning depth of research into breezy digestibility." —Big Issue

"There is so much to learn and enjoy in this book, with the impressive amount of research never weighing down the accessible writing . . . Kells makes an elegant plea for the future library—one that will resonate with most book lovers." —Good Reading

"The Library is a treasure trove and reaching the last page simply prompts an impassioned cry for more of the same." —Otago Daily Times

“In his new book, The Library, Stuart Kells compiles a number of fascinating tales about libraries—both ancient and modern, public and personal, real and fictional.” —The Woven Tale Press

From the Publisher

04/01/2019

William Shakespeare's works draw on hundreds of writers, from the classics to his contemporaries. According to Kells (Penguin and the Lane Brothers, The Library), the Bard's Stratford house, New Place, had a study with books in the 1630s. Yet none of Shakespeare's personal volumes have ever been found, and only three pages of his actual manuscripts. Kells's account of the search for Shakespeare's library leads through many fascinating bypaths of book history. He recounts the forgeries of William-Henry Ireland, who "discovered" new manuscript versions of "Hamblette" and the "Tragedye of Kynge Leare" and even an entirely new play, Vortigern. Kells discusses some of the well-known bibliophiles of the early 19th century, among them John Ker, third Duke of Roxburghe; George John, second Earl Spencer; and more obscure figures, such as the clergyman Francis Wrangham, as well as Shakespeare scholars George Steevens and John Payne Collier (also a forger). While no one has yet found Shakespeare's library, Kells hopes new leads may yet surface. The work takes an unfortunate detour into the Cloud Cuckoo Land of the authorship question, claiming Ben Jonson and John Florio greatly improved Shakespeare's mediocre plays. VERDICT Still, an enjoyable excursion into Shakespearean (and non-Shakespearean) booklore.—Joseph Rosenblum, Univ. of North Carolina, Greensboro

Library Journal