Soul of the age: the life, mind and world of William Shakespeare by Jonathan Bate gives an insight of the extraordinary, colourful and often violent world that shaped Shakespeare’s thinking. Little known facts about his life add mystique to a writer who produced such a large volume of work. Why was he the only dramatist not to be imprisoned? How did Bottom’s dream rewrite the bible? How did his play lead to the death of an Earl? The answers are in this book.

Many people write a book but why do some become published authors and others don’t? Comprised of 20 letters, The Maeve Binchy writers’ club offers advice and tips with focus on what editors and publishers are looking for.

Simply memorizing or blindly accepting information has the potential to lead to the wrong answers and can impact on day-to-day decisions. Asking the right questions: a guide to critical thinking by M. Neil Browne and Stuart M. Keeley teaches how to think critically, how to spot fallacies and avoid being manipulated. If something seems to good to be true, it probably is!

Read these books and others about poetry, what would happen if Aristotle ran Hogwarts and free speech in this month’s Literature Recent Picks.