Vinegar Girl

Four stars just for it being fun to read. This the third book I've read from the Hogarth Shakespeare project, after [b:Hag-Seed 28588073 Hag-Seed Margaret Atwood https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1463887982s/28588073.jpg 49490147] and [b:Macbeth 33952851 Macbeth (Hogarth Shakespeare) Jo Nesbø https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1507978598s/33952851.jpg 54925798], and my favorite of the three. None have been completely satisfying, maybe because it's hard to recreate the stories and capture the pacing of Shakespeare in today's world, but it is interesting to see the different attempts. I give Anne Tyler credit for bringing energy to the old “need to get married for a green card” scenario.

Meh. The Taming of the Shrew is a classic and can be looked at as an example of the time about which it was written, even if parts are difficult to find humorous with its depictions of women. Vinegar Girl is problematic in part because of its modernization.

It's never bad, but it never rose beyond “decent” either. When it really goes for the whole “comedy of manners” vibe (which isn't very often) it can be fun, but otherwise I just found it well-written but completely unremarkable.