Reviews for 3 / 03

The average rating for 3 / 03 based on 2 reviews is 2 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2016-09-25 00:00:00 Daryl Cliff I was leaning toward 3 stars but the last half of this quirky novel pushed it into the 3.6-3.8 range. My Name Is Will recounts the parallel stories of a critical-year-in-the-life of William Shakespeare and his modern-day namesake William Shakespeare Greenberg (Willie), a prodigal son cruising on auto-pilot through the grad program at UC Santa Cruz. Both he and Shakespeare face life-altering events as young men (Willie's in his 20s, Shakespeare is 18) that force both to focus their minds on what kind of men they want to become. The more interesting storyline is Shakespeare's; Willie's life and goals don't have the same gravitas, and it's only toward the end of the novel, when the two protagonists' lives intersect more and more, that Willie's dilemmas stir the same concern. One of the greater pleasures of reading is catching all the people, events and even future lines arising in Shakespeare's thread that appear in his later plays and poems. And, on Willie's side, noting the parallels with the Bard's life. The novel's tone is mostly light hearted but the final 25 pages or so take a more serious, though not unwelcome, turn. The change in tone makes sense and transitions smoothly, making the book a somewhat more profound reading experience than you might otherwise expect. Verily, be warned, the book's subtitle - "A novel of sex, drugs and Shakespeare" - is accurate. There's quite a bit of shagging, as the British might say, and not inconsiderable drug use (as much in the 16th century as the 20th) so anyone put off by that sort of thing probably won't enjoy My Name Is Will. Otherwise, if you like Shakespeare and are looking for a not-too-heavy read, I can easily recommend it.

Review # 2 was written on 2018-08-17 00:00:00 Michelle Southers God, the 1980s character was so unlikeable. Another one of those "completely boring, unwashed"--I'm being literal here--"always-stoned, personality-free guys who somehow has dozens of hot women want to bang him" that men write and seem to think are clever. And how dare his dad pay for his tuition, room, and meal plan and not also give him money for the drugs he spends literally all his time doing?! I wish there was a joke here that I was missing, that the author didn't expect me to sympathize with and like his character. I was supposed to be on his side, as least in a "friend who's a fuck-up but still a good time" way; instead I kept waiting for him to get hit by a bus. Also, thanks for the two and half page, totally earnest screed on why Reagan was evil and the "war on drugs" was racist. Topical and cutting-edge in a book published in 2008, and how would I have truly understood the historical nuance of the author's college years without it? The two stars are for the "real" Shakespeare sections. They were stupid plot-wise but pretty well written.