King of Shadows by Susan Cooper was first published in  1999 and it’s described as being ‘A magical adventure bringing Shakespeare to life’.

It begins in America where a company of young would-be actors have been picked for The Company of Boys, they’ve been chosen from youth theatres, schools  and companies across the country.  It’s a tough regime but there’s a great incentive to succeed as those chosen will be acting on stage at the Globe in London, the rebuilt theatre associated with Sheakespeare’s acting company. They’ll be putting on A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Nathan Field is thrilled to be chosen for the London trip, but almost as soon as he gets to London he falls ill with a fever and ends up in hospital, delirious.

The time slips to 1599 where Nat is now a young actor at the original Globe, learning the trade. He’s on loan from St Paul’s School and some in the company are a bit jealous of him and make life difficult. But Will Shakespeare himself notices Nat, he’s having some difficulty fitting into 16th century London and has to think on his feet at times.

I really like books which feature Shakespeare so I enjoyed this one which was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal.