A satisfactory overview of the Bard's life.

That basically sums it up - this is actually a really good introduction to newcomers or amateur readers. The story focuses more on Shakespeare's life and career than on his actual works (most plays get only an A5 page which sums up more their context than their genius), using a mixture of facts, reasonable suppositions, and occasionally outright guesses, but Lemmon is always open about this aspect.

The positive aspects about the work: Lemmon doesn't really place any judgement on the works (some other "introductory" bios seem to enjoy dissing 'King John' or 'Titus Andronicus') and he presents a clear vision of Elizabethan England, explaining the ways in which life and context would've shaped both the writer and his audience. He provides a gloss of other historians and scholarships. It's a very basic work, but a good start for newcomers.

Obviously, everyone coming at this book - whether from an academic, creative, or historic viewpoint - needs to be aware of any biases, and of elements of Lemmon's summary that could be either received wisdom or slightly left-of-centre theories. But it all works out well. And, personally, I love the fact that every page has a different footer, describing roughly what the page discusses.

Anyhow, it's basic, but satisfactory.
( )