Shakespeare: His Work and World is a series that provides an overview of Shakespeare and the historical elements that shaped his works. Each volume includes large headings, subheadings, fact boxes, and plenty of full-color photos, making it easy for readers to locate and refer back to information.

Perhaps the most biographical of the set, The Life And Times Of William Shakespeare includes information about his early life, his education, and a brief summary about his family, but more of the book is given over to how his works were influenced and inspired by England's politics and culture.

Likewise, the other three books in the series give great introductions to the various topics (comedies, tragedies, history plays and poems) without diving so far into the subjects that a Shakespeare novice would be confused.

The series does a good job of compressing complicated subjects into short paragraphs while still offering an option for more information. For instance, the chapters containing the history plays often include a fact box highlighting the actual historical figure, like the real Richard II.

This four-volume set follows Britannica's reputation of trustworthy and concise summarization. This series is not for those looking for in-depth analysis or literary criticism. In comparison to the Encyclopedia Britannica's Guide to Shakespeare, the information does not stray very far from the text available in the online version, so this series serves as a great backup for libraries.

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