"To what extent did the relationships in Shakespeare's plays reflect the familial structures of his day? To what extent did Shakespeare personally experience the familial dynamics about which he wrote so eloquently? And to what extent were Shakespeare's own family experiences typical or atypical of other Elizabethan or Jacobean families? These questions can be addressed because more is known of Shakespeare's family than of the families of his fellow writers and actors. For several generations, members of the Shakespeare family were important local figures in and around Stratford-upon-Avon, and, fortunately, from the Middle Ages until the present day, Stratford-upon-Avon has remained one of the best-documented towns in England." "This book gathers into a single source all the available information concerning Shakespeare's family, from his grandfathers on the maternal and paternal sides to his granddaughter, the last member of his direct family line."--Jacket.