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French Stratfordians release epub

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Shakespeare, Combien de Pretendants?, new book of French essays on Shakespeare authorship
by Linda Theil

 According to their announcement on today's European Shakespeare Research Association (ESRA) email distribution list, French scholars Dominique Goy-Blanquet and FranƧois Laroque edited a book of French language essays addressing the Shakespeare authorship question. 

The ebook, titled Shakespeare: Combien de Pretendants? (Shakespeare: How Many Pretenders?) was released last week by French publisher Thierry Marchaisse. The ebook is available in Kindle format at Amazon/France.

Contributors include: Daniel Bougnoux Christophe Camard, Roger Chartier, Jacques Darras, Jonathan Frances Dominique Goy-Blanquet, FranƧois Laroque, Lois Potter, James Shapiro, Henry Suhamy, GisĆØle Venet, Stanley Wells and Paul Edmonson, and Richard Wilson.

Goy-Blanquet and Laroque said in their joint announcement on the ESRA list:
As you probably heard, Lamberto Tassinari has undertaken to prove that John Florio is the true author of Shakespeare’s work and [to] denounce the “Stratford industry” who are doing their best to hide [Florio's] revelation from the world. 
Instead of being ignored as it deserved, [Florio’s] hypothesis has received such strong support in France from the philosopher Daniel Bougnoux that [French newspaper] Le Monde (9 January 2016) published -- side-by-side -- [UK Prime Minister] David Cameron’s launch of the Shakespeare year [2016], and Tassinari/Bougnoux’s conspiracy theories.  
The ample media attention [Tassinari and Bougnoux] received made us feel it time to answer, with hopes that more critically aware readers will restore the balance between facts and fiction. The e-book [Shakespeare: Combien de Pretendants?] is a collective effort to  discuss and clarify their more fanciful assertions.
The Le Monde article that infuriated the French Stratfordians
Lamberto Tassinari is a Canadian emigre who authored John Florio: the Man who Was Shakespeare (Giano Books, 2009), with a second edition and ebook published in 2013. His January 9, 2016 Le Monde article that so infuriated the French Stratfordians was titled "Le cĆ©lĆØbre « Barde de Stratford » n’est pas celui qu’on croit!". (The celebrated 'Bard of Stratford' is not who you think he is!). 

Tassinari said, ". . . the French newspaper Le Monde published my article . . . alongside David Cameron's Shakespearean celebration. John Florio, a step away from London, is knocking resolutely at England's door asking for a long denied recognition."

In 2014 Daniel Bougnoux reviewed Tassinari's book on his weblog Le Randonneur. In this review, titled titled "Pour un Shakespeare vrai" (For a true Shakespeare) Bougnoux said:
Je suis, venant de lire son ouvrage, partagƩ entre deux sentiments, d'admiration et d'indignation : je crois vraiment qu'il a raison, et Ƨa renverse tout ce qu'on croyait savoir, Ƨa remet tout Ơ l'Ʃchelle.
(. . . I think he [Tassinari] is right, and it overturns everything we thought we knew . . .)
Je propose donc aux lecteurs de ce blog d'ĆŖtre les premiers en France Ć  s'intĆ©resser Ć  cette thĆØse, au moins Ć  l'entendre et Ć  l'examiner. La « vĆ©ritĆ© » en cette matiĆØre ne peut naĆ®tre que d'un dĆ©bat loyal, sans arguments de principe ni d'autoritĆ©.
(I propose to the readers of this blog to be the first in France to be interested in this thesis, at least to hear and consider it. The "truth" in this matter can only be born of a fair debate, no arguments of principle or authority.) 
Bougnoux published an extensive response to his review under the headline, "Affaire Shakespeare-Florio-Tassinari, petite suite". 

Bougnoux's book on the Shakespeare authorship, Shakespeare le Choix du Spectre  was published in February this year. Goy-Blanquet reveiwed both Tassinari and Bougnoux's books in the French literary journal En Attendant Nadeau under the same title as her ebook "Shakespeare: Combien de Pretendants?" and Bougnoux responded evoking Diana Price, whereupon Goy-Blanquet replied evoking -- of all people -- Alan Nelson.

 OMG!
Resources
ESRA, https://www.um.es/shakespeare/esra/index.php
TM, http://www.editions-marchaisse.fr/collection-octets-catalogue-shakespeare-combien-de-pretendants.html
Amazon, https://www.amazon.fr/Shakespeare-Combien-pr%C3%A9tendants-Dominique-GOY-BLANQUET-ebook/dp/B01E5C9XWO
Tassinari/Florio, http://www.johnflorio-is-shakespeare.com/
Le Monde Jan 9 2016, http://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2016/01/09/le-celebre-barde-de-stratford-n-est-pas-celui-qu-on-croit_4844527_3232.html
Bougnoux, http://media.blogs.la-croix.com/pour-un-shakespeare-vrai/2014/04/30/
http://media.blogs.la-croix.com/affaire-shakespeare-florio-tassinari-petite-suite/2014/06/09/
http://www.lesimpressionsnouvelles.com/catalogue/shakespeare-le-choix-du-spectre/
Attendant, http://www.en-attendant-nadeau.fr/2016/02/10/shakespeare-combien-pretendants/
Bougnoux response, http://www.en-attendant-nadeau.fr/daniel-bougnoux-reponse/

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