Bill Bryson’s short biography of Shakespeare, part of the Eminent Lives series. It’s short because there’s a dearth of I nformation about the Bard (though not compared to other well-known figures of the time), so Bryson widens the net and provides background relating to the City of London, living conditions, the theatrical scene and even diet in order to provide educated speculation regarding how Shakespeare lived, what he knew, the people with whom he was familiar and the extent and nature of that familiarity. Good stuff.