William Shakespeare. The man, the bard. How has a man who died over 400 years ago remained relevant? Though not everyone’s cup of tea, Shakespeare has demonstrated an impressive staying power in both his persona and his works. Films like West Side Story, The Lion King, and My Own Private Idaho keep the basic plots of Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Henry V, but update the stories so they make sense to modern audiences. Other films like Shakespeare in Love feature Shakespeare as a character, imagining what life was like for the Queen’s favorite playwright.
This trend also extends to modern fiction, where books often feature Shakespeare in a variety of ways. Sometimes his plays are reimagined in a new, innovative story; sometimes Shakespeare’s personal adventures are explored, and other times Shakespeare exists in fiction as he exists today: an incredibly important and resilient linchpin in English literature. With his birthday less than a month away, read more to find some Shakespearean books that you can check out in his honor.