Shakespeare's Sonnets have caused endless debate and speculation: who is the dark lady, who is the 'only begetter'; and what light do the poems shed on the life of the poet? Yet the sonnets themselves can be enjoyed for their lyricism rather than their intention.

Written as a form of personal confession - of love, of grief, of anger, of jealousy and of lust - the sonnets encompass a huge range of human emotion beautifully expressed within the restrictions of the form. Some, such as 'Shall I compare thee to a summer's day' or 'Let me not to the marriage of true minds' will be instantly familiar to readers, while others, equally rich in imagery, are less well known. Together they form a powerful meditation on the nature of love, marriage, beauty and time.