My favorite books to investigate who William Shakespeare really was

Why am I passionate about this?

I am passionate about solving problems of any type. I have a long history of solving Computer problems that are known traditionally as “bugs”. After retiring, I turned my attention to other problems & mysteries, discovering I had a talent for historical detective work too! I wasn’t satisfied with the - very unconvincing - traditional “chocolate box” narrative of Shakespeare’s family and life. He must have had much more impact on the wider world than is currently known and I believe, after 450 years, I finally cracked it!


I wrote...

Debugging Shakespeare

By Decimus Erasmus Buglawton,

Book cover of Debugging Shakespeare

What is my book about?

Debugging Shakespeare does “just what it says on the tin” - it unravels the longstanding mystery of exactly who the Bard was and where he was from. Piece by piece, Buglawton dissects what we thought we knew and about his true birthplace and where he is interred. He introduces a completely new candidate, who not only had the wealth, the education, and the knowledge to write the plays and sonnets, but did so much more we didn’t know. The book even discloses where the Bard’s mortal remains are truly located. Along the way you will discover how the Bard embedded numerous clues in all his works so he would eventually be discovered

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Behind the Arras: Thomas Cecil as Shakespeare

Decimus Erasmus Buglawton Why did I love this book?

I recommend this 93-page book because Defoe provides some convincing evidence for Thomas Cecil being a contender for the role of the author of Shakespeare.

Although I believe he was just one of many aliases of the Bard, she definitely nails this one!

Another reason I enjoyed this book is that it includes a proper book index, which is becoming more rare these days. I know how long it takes to create a good index and Defoe has produced a very usable one in my opinion. It shows she cares about her readers!

By Deborah Defoe,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Behind the Arras as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This first comprehensive biography of Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter, eldest son of Lord Burghley, provides a wealth of evidence that Cecil was the true author of the Shakespeare canon. Specifically his education acquired within the rarefied Cecil household, his inside knowledge of the politics of the court, his military experience, and his knowledge and application of architectural principles set him apart from all other authorship candidates.


Book cover of Dee-Coding Shakespeare: The Holy Trinity Solution Series

Decimus Erasmus Buglawton Why did I love this book?

Alan Green hosts a popular Youtube channel that explores the mysteries and secret codes built into the works of Shakespeare and his decryptions are quite extraordinary in their depth.

Green has been investigating these hidden “Bard codes” for more than 15 years and his book reflects the incredible effort he has put into his work. He was at one time the musical director of The Monkees!)

By Alan William Green,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Dee-Coding Shakespeare as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Six years' of intense research into Shakespeare's grave, monument, and Sonnets dedication, went into producing this ground-breaking work. Readers are taken on a fascinating journey in which they're guided to solve the codes that explain a hitherto completely unsuspected side to the greatest literary mystery ever. In a revelation of detective work, the author thoroughly documents the supporting role of Dr. John Dee, alchemist, mathematician, and leading cryptographer in the Elizabethan court.The codes predict an actual location — the Holy of Holies Altar Stone within the poet's church in Stratford-upon-Avon — where the Bard claims to have left physical evidence…


Book cover of Shakespeare's Stanley Epitaphs in Tong Shropshire

Decimus Erasmus Buglawton Why did I love this book?

Helen Moorwood digs deep into the connections between “William Shakespeare” and the Stanley family whose massive marble tombs in Tong church are a sight to behold and weave a tale worthy of any detective novel.

She digs deep into the genealogy of the Stanleys and explores each and every rabbit hole to get to the truth!

Book cover of The Greater and Lesser Worlds of Robert Fludd: Macrocosm, Microcosm, and Medicine

Decimus Erasmus Buglawton Why did I love this book?

This book contains an incredible amount of detail and diagrams about the enigmatic “Dr Robert Fludd” who I regard as just another alias of the Bard.

Fludd, like Sir Francis Bacon was a proto scientist - way ahead of his time - with a background matching closely my own beliefs about the true origin of the polymath. It offers a whole new perspective on what the Bard actually knew in addition to writing poems and plays

By Joscelyn Godwin,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Greater and Lesser Worlds of Robert Fludd as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An illustrated reference book on a seminal figure of occult philosophy and Renaissance thought

* Explains Fludd's thoughts on cosmic harmonies, divination, the kabbalah, astrology, geomancy, alchemy, the Rosicrucians, and multiple levels of existence

* Includes more than 200 of Fludd's illustrations, representing the whole corpus of Fludd's iconography, each one accompanied by Godwin's expert commentary

* Explores Fludd's medical work as an esoteric Paracelsian physician and his theories on the macrocosm of elements, planets, stars, and subtle and divine beings and the microcosm of the human being and its creative activities, including material never before translated

One of the…


Book cover of Shakespeare for Every Day of the Year

Decimus Erasmus Buglawton Why did I love this book?

This book can be glanced at just on a day to day basis, mostly for fun!

Each date of the year has a page dedicated to one particular aspect of the Bard’s works, meaning you can add to your knowledge of the Bard a day at a time. I keep it by my bedside and look at it each morning before getting up!

By Allie Esiri (editor),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Shakespeare for Every Day of the Year as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 12, 13, 14, and 15.

What is this book about?

From Allie Esiri, editor of the bestselling A Poem for Every Day of the Year and A Poem for Every Night of the Year, comes this beautiful gift anthology of Shakespeare's works.

William Shakespeare wrote at least 37 plays, 154 sonnets and a handful of longer poems and you can discover them all here. Each page of this unique collection contains an extract, which might be a famous poem, quote or scene, matched to the date. Allie Esiri's introductions give her readers a new window into the work, time and life of the greatest writer in the English language.

Shakespeare…


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Book cover of The Truth About Unringing Phones

Lara Lillibridge

New book alert!

What is my book about?

When Lara was four years old, her father moved from Rochester, New York, to Anchorage, Alaska, a distance of over 4,000 miles. She spent her childhood chasing after him, flying a quarter of the way around the world to tug at the hem of his jacket.

Now that he is in his eighties, she contemplates her obligation to an absentee father. The Truth About Unringing Phones is an exploration of responsibility and culpability told in experimental and fragmented essays.

The Truth About Unringing Phones

By Lara Lillibridge,

What is this book about?

When Lara was four years old, her father moved from Rochester, New York, to Anchorage, Alaska, a distance of over 4,000 miles. She spent her childhood chasing after him, flying a quarter of the way around the world to tug at the hem of his jacket. Now that he is in his eighties, she contemplates her obligation to an absentee father.




The Truth About Unringing Phones: Essays on Yearning is an exploration of responsibility and culpability told in experimental and fragmented essays.


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in William Shakespeare, the Elizabethan era, and London?

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