Two stars reflects more on my limited interest in all the details; the book is well-written and researched.

This historical account of the time period in which Shakespeare was writing really aided me study of Shakespeare as an undergrad - it gave me a context to explore political implications in Hamlet.

About as thorough a book, on the promised texts and contexts, as one could hope for in two hundred pages. Tight, challenging, thought-provoking academic writing, with very, very few words wasted, and an engaging structure. It wasn't Shakespeare-heavy either, as one might expect, even in the chapter on Theatre. For me, this was a good thing, not least because there was so much other Elizabethan/Jacobean talent to explore. If you'd like to better understand the conditions which produced a Shakespeare–the formidable education system, religious upheavals, etc.–I find it hard to imagine a better place to start. Worthy of time and reflection.

Briggs is a good writer! Some sentences were a bit long for my tastes, but it really is an excellent book on the period. She structures it really well so it's easy to return to parts that might be more relevant to a specific issue than others. Recommended to other students of the period!