Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award

Here, in gorgeous, tender, and lyrical prose, Smith tells the story of a life shaped by Shakespeare's poetry. Melding tragedy and comedy, he gracefully weaves together the stories of his bittersweet childhood, his struggle to help his parents care for his handicapped sister, his early experience as Hamlet's dresser for the Shakespeare festival, his poignant experiences teaching Shakespeare to seniors, and dozens of illuminating scenes from Shakespeare's plays.

Hamlet's Dresser is a redemptive memoir of a man made whole by art and an intimate encounter with the plays and sonnets that will make readers fall in love with Shakespeare again, or for the first time.