Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult

7 reviews

kelly_e's review

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Title: By Any Other Name
Author: Jodi Picoult
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: August 20, 2024

I received a complimentary eARC from Penguin Random House Canada via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted

T H R E E • W O R D S

Fascinating • Provocative • Dense

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Two women, centuries apart—one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays—are both forced to hide behind another name to make their voices heard.

In 1581, Emilia Bassano—like most young women of her day—is allowed no voice of her own. But as the Lord Chamberlain’s mistress, she has access to all theater in England, and finds a way to bring her work to the stage secretly. And yet, creating some of the world’s greatest dramatic masterpieces comes at great cost: by paying a man for the use of his name, she will write her own out of history.

In the present, playwright Melina Green has just written a new work inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. Although the challenges are different four hundred years later, the playing field is still not level for women in theater. Would Melina—like Emilia—be willing to forfeit her credit as author, just for a chance to see her work performed?

💭 T H O U G H T S

Anytime Jodi Picoult announces a new book, I am going to be interested simply because she is such a skilled writer and never shies away from writing about polarizing topics. Reading the synopsis for By Any Other Name I wasn't sure how her 2024 release would land for me personally. I have very little interest in Shakespeare and minimal knowledge about the theatre world. Despite those factors I knew I still wanted to read it, especially given her foray into historical fiction.

First off, this novel is incredibly well researched and skillfully written. Told through the voices of two women centuries apart, this novel tackles the historical and contemporary challenges faced by women and their plight to receive the recognition they deserve. Picoult creates two vivid timelines, two separate settings, and two distinct casts of characters, while challenging Shakespeare's authorship and offering up an alternative theory.

While I appreciated the rich historical detail and thought the dual timelines element worked well in the beginning, the contemporary storyline eventually took me out of the story. Some of Melina's actions and choices felt entirely inconsistent with what Picoult is trying to do with this narrative. I understand this timelines is needed to showcase how women continue to have to work harder to be recognized, yet it could have taken a different route and easily achieved the same goal.

By Any Other Name is unlike any other of Picoult's previous novels. Personally, I was less engaged and it took me over a month to get through, yet overall I enjoyed what this story attempts to do. I have a feeling opinions will be very split with this one, especially for anyone who goes in hoping for something similar to her previous contemporary novels. The extensive author's note at the end if a must read to offer more context and her thought process in crafting this story.

📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• Shakespeare
• the Elizabethan era
• stories about resilient women

⚠️ CW: misogyny, sexism, gaslighting, emotional abuse, domestic abuse, physical abuse, rape, sexual assault, sexual violence, infidelity, adult/minor relationship, epidemic/pandemic, pregnancy, miscarriage, abortion, death, death of child, death of parent, grief, sexual content, classism, antisemitism, alcohol, alcoholism, toxic relationship

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"Life as a woman is not without risks."

"There once was a girl who became invisible so that her words might not be."

"History is written by those in power."

"Grief was the tax of having something precious." 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Classism

Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic

amachonis's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Racism, Violence, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Ableism, Confinement, Cursing, and Vomit

kreglow's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I enjoyed this one, but there were some issues. Pacing was inconsistent with the intertwining stories. The Elizabethan era portions tended to drag and the language was more melodramatic, while the modern day portion was paced well enough, but only barely touched upon the themes of sexism and racism within the theater community, instead following the heroine of the story, Melina, and a character arc that honestly is not fleshed out enough to make its intended impact. There is a romantic subplot that really doesn't make sense and feels tacked on. And the ending introduces an element of magical realism that did not exist until that point in the story. Overall, a decent read, but not perfect.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

davschi's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Antisemitism, and Death of parent

devlaluna2's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

wow what an absolutely vibrant novel!

let me begin my thanking netgalley for the arc of this book! so grateful

this is my first jodi picoult book, and went into by any other name with the knowledge that I am by no means a historical fiction girlie! i have a few historical fiction books I've read and enjoyed, but it is simply not a genre I tend to gravitate towards and read regularly. I have found, however, that multigenerational novels that explore a historical timeline as they intertwine with a modern timeline are my desired format for consuming the genre, which this book has! 

if you are a fellow lover of shakespeare's works, the debate surrounding shakespeare's authorship, playwriting and publishing industry politics, 1500s feminism, representation and diversity in the current theatre scene, or even christopher marlowe.... this is absolutely for you.

fully fleshed characters, beautiful and magnetic prose, complicated interpersonal relationships, and an outspoken main character that is witty and sharp, and above all, deeply passionate 

jodi's writing is so immersive and warm, even when discussing intense hardships and polarizing topics. overall, such a spectacular ode to what it is to be seen, known, heard, and remembered. 

fantastic! I have a new go to recommendation to give when asked about a genre i don't  frequent

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Antisemitism, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism

bookb1itch's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Thank you to Better Reading for an advance prrof copy of this book.  This is the review I submitted to them:

Jodi Picoult delivers!  Told in her trademark addictively realistic style, supported by research into the lives of real characters, she asks: did Shakespeare deserve the accolades showered upon him over the past four centuries?  Did he even write most of the plays and poems?  Picoult has me convinced - how did he alone achieve such a huge body of work, whilst acting full-time?  Also, how could a man who most likely never left England write so convincingly about the Danish court and life in Italy?  Not to mention how a humble actor could write with such knowledge of the legal process.  Emilia's story is addictive - I just had to know how it was all going to work out for her, if indeed it would.  The parallels with Melina's story in the present are extremely unsettling- have we made much progress on the road to equality in over four hundred years?  Bottom line, this is a gripping and highly entertaining combination of the stories of two remarkable women, fighting for recognition where men control the narrative.  Highly recommended!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Miscarriage

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Antisemitism, Abortion, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic

juanat77's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult 

Jodi Picoult is a must buy for me. I read anything written by her without reading the synopsis. She often writes about controversial issues while also educating the reader on a specific subject (my favorite part).

Any Other Name is different from her other novels, while in her other books she often has multiple POVs in the same time period this one has a historical blend to it, taking place in the 1500s and continuing to present day. Picoult shows how some challenges women face really did not change in the past 500 years within a chauvinistic world. This well-researched tale invites us to think, “Did Shakespeare really write his own stories?” This book shows playwright Emilia Bassano’s life in 1500s England and the obstacles she goes through. Due to the time period she lived through, her voice was not valued as a woman and the literary works that she created were not attributed to her, but rather the well-known figure, William Shakespeare who would claim her stories as his own, showcasing the challenges women like Emilia endured during this time and how they were not seen as equals to their male counterparts.

Fast forward to present day, Melina Green, a playwright and descendant of Emilia experiences challenges of her own. Although woman do have more of a voice in present day some things remain the same. Melina faces similar challenges that Emilia experienced in a male dominated Broadway world. She too, hides behind a man so that her play could be taken seriously.

I loved the connection between Emilia and Melina within the story along with how well written it was. I also really appreciated the character of Jasper, the quirky theatre critic, who showed a unique perspective within the text.

Previously to reading this book, I was not incredibly knowledgeable of Shakespeare. Picoult really helps readers who might have a base level understanding of his work learn more about the playwright. This book showcased people who felt unseen and without a voice while also showing the strength and perseverance they had.

 

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this thought-provoking novel in exchange for an honest review. 

Releases 8/20/24

#NetGalley  #ByAnyOtherName #randomhouse

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail