A girl like me, more nimble of mind than finger, what am I to do?

Hide my wit in a half-penny purse, and smile all day long? Boils and plagues! Thirteen-year-old Susanna Shakespeare longs for something exciting to happen in her quiet, dusty village of Stratford, England. Her father, Will, is off in London, working on new plays. Susanna yearns to be a part of that world, but girls aren't allowed to perform in the theater, or even attend school. Narrow-minded knaves! Susanna refuses to turn into a good-for-nothing lackwit and begins keeping a journal, hoping something will deliver her from her dull life. When her uncle gets into trouble with the Master of Revels, Susanna is whisked off to London to help. Suddenly her stage is set for adventure . . . and romance. Swan Town offers an unconventional glimpse into the life of the famed Bard's family in Elizabethan England, as seen through the eyes of Shakespeare's spirited daughter.