My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;Coral is far more red than her lips' red;
If snow be white,why then her are dun;
If hairs be wire, black wires grow on her head.
I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in her breath than my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
I grant I never saw a goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.
Sonnet 130, Shakespeare
"It was all a matter of a goddess - dark, hidden, deadly, horribly desirable. When did her image first dawn?"
Nothing Like the Sun, Anthony Burgess
Since yesterday, I have been thinking about one recommending one book to celebrate the Bard. It is Anthony Burgess' fictionalized biography Nothing Like The Sun. Burgess also wrote a "proper" biography of Shakespeare, for the little we know about the man, which is more a study about his work, and it is a great read in itself, but Nothing Like the Sun is a true masterpiece. It is everything Shakespeare in Love, to which it was unfairly compared, failed to be: intelligent, genuine and above all Shakespearean. Read more about the novel here and it gives you an idea of why it's so great. Here I am merely recommending it. For anyone who love Shakespeare, this is a must-read.
I have immediately put this on my "to read" list! I enjoy fiction/bios about Shakespeare's life. Have you ever read the Canadian classic "Shakespeare's Dog" by Leon Rooke? It's well worth reading! It's written from the point of view of his dog, of course. The dog has many unflattering things to say about Anne Hathaway and a few about Will too, but when all is said and done, he is devoted to his master. The action takes place in Stratford before Will runs off to London to fulfill his destiny.
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