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katiegilley's review against another edition
3.0
More of a 3.5 star book. What a fun adventure! Not the perfect book, but definitely a great start to the new year for me. Antiquarian book seller on the hunt for the true author of Shakespeare's plays. I've never read so much about repairing books and it sounds fascinating. Do you think it's too late to explore archiving as a career? I was often reminded of a couple of other books that I really enjoyed: The Swan Thieves and the Thirteenth Tale. It's a fast read and completely worth the time!
lizzycatslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
I really kind of loved this book! I wasn't sure what to expect when I started to read it but as I turned page by page I was greeted by a feeling of pure joy. It was like that feeling I get when I go into a quiet and calm bookstore and I can smell the pages of all the books. It is just a good and warm booky feeling. That is what this book felt like for me. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It did start a little slow but I didn't mind. It wasn't slow in the sense that I was bored, it just "was". I never sat down and had trouble reading it. I always enjoyed it. I just really liked it. :)
sarahchoi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
danib11's review against another edition
3.0
For me, the first 100 pages would be 4 stars. I like the book mystery but felt like someone told the author the book needed to be longer and so he threw in more mystery without much suspense and the final chapters spell out what you've already deduced yourself leaving me to believe the author/publisher believes readers are slow-witted. But all in all, a decent, fun summer read aloud.
suvata's review against another edition
5.0
ModernMrsDarcy.com #MMD pick for October 2019
If you like books about books then you’ll like The Bookman’s Tale. If you like intriguing mysteries then you’ll like The Bookman’s Tale. This is the story about a bookseller who collects and restores antique literature. During the course of his work he discovers some Shakespeare forgeries. Now the game is afoot and the book takes us through three periods of history to solve the mystery of what literature is real and what is fake. If you liked The Shadow of the Wind you will like this book too. I loved it. It was right up my alley.
If you like books about books then you’ll like The Bookman’s Tale. If you like intriguing mysteries then you’ll like The Bookman’s Tale. This is the story about a bookseller who collects and restores antique literature. During the course of his work he discovers some Shakespeare forgeries. Now the game is afoot and the book takes us through three periods of history to solve the mystery of what literature is real and what is fake. If you liked The Shadow of the Wind you will like this book too. I loved it. It was right up my alley.
alidottie's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book about caring about books with a fun mystery woven in along with healing from loss and learning to live again.
kiwibookfiend's review
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
kitsuneheart's review against another edition
5.0
"National Treasure" or "The DaVinci code" for Shakespeareans. Having studied book preservation in my Master's degree and a fair bit of Shakespeare in my BA, this hit all the right buttons. The descriptions of rebinding books...it was engrossing. Most people will, at best, enjoy the descriptiveness, but I could almost feel the materials while Peter Byerly works.
This book follows recently widowed Peter Byerly, a man who shows a lot of the signs of Asperger Syndrome, but at least of social anxiety, as he enters emotional recovery, following his wife's death. He becomes engrossed in the mystery of a painting he finds in a book, and then in a book itself. One that might prove, once and for all, that Shakespeare is the author of the works attributed to his name.
Having studied Shakespeare and the bit of controversy surrounding the authorship of the Folio, this was nice to see. It's not talked about much, anymore. Mostly because the evidence is so massively in favor of Shakespeare being the author, of course. But there's also just a romanticism about the idea of one man writing so many perfect works, which no one really wants to dispell.
In all, a great book, on an interesting subject, and so up-front about dealing with grief and adjusting to the world again, as someone who has lost their one social attachment. Something I may have to face, one day....
A great gift for librarians of lovers of Shakespeare. And, given how often those overlap, I imagine this is going on a lot of shelves.
This book follows recently widowed Peter Byerly, a man who shows a lot of the signs of Asperger Syndrome, but at least of social anxiety, as he enters emotional recovery, following his wife's death. He becomes engrossed in the mystery of a painting he finds in a book, and then in a book itself. One that might prove, once and for all, that Shakespeare is the author of the works attributed to his name.
Having studied Shakespeare and the bit of controversy surrounding the authorship of the Folio, this was nice to see. It's not talked about much, anymore. Mostly because the evidence is so massively in favor of Shakespeare being the author, of course. But there's also just a romanticism about the idea of one man writing so many perfect works, which no one really wants to dispell.
In all, a great book, on an interesting subject, and so up-front about dealing with grief and adjusting to the world again, as someone who has lost their one social attachment. Something I may have to face, one day....
A great gift for librarians of lovers of Shakespeare. And, given how often those overlap, I imagine this is going on a lot of shelves.