Shakespeare's Restless World by Neil MacGregor

Neil MacGregor, the director of the British Museum, writes about twenty objects and their relation to Shakespeare's life and work.  I learned so much from reading this book!  For instance, did you know that Shakespeare's generation was the first non-Catholic generation in England? And the first to know that the world was not flat because Sir Francis Drake successfully sailed around the world? And that there are references to these events throughout Shakespeare's plays?  MacGregor links these assertions to objects in the British Museum collection (respectively a communion cup and a silver medal commemorating Drake,s circumnavigation of the globe). According to MacGregor, Shakespeare's fondness for disguises as a plot device developed in part from the necessity for Catholics in England to hide their faith for fear of persecution. The book is chock full of interesting tidbits like this! Now to go back and read the play with new eyes! 320 pages.