Hogarth Press, June 21, 2016.
Two Stars
Vinegar Girl is the third installment in the Hogarth Shakespeare series, in
which contemporary authors write retellings of Shakespeare’s classic plays.
Tyler’s novel is a cover version of The
Taming of the Shrew, the infamous misogynistic comedy in which a strong
woman is “tamed” by the men in her life. This novel was just as ridiculous as
the original play, with its light comedic tone, but I was hoping for more
modern sensibilities from the characters – as it was, they lacked depth of
emotion.
The “shrew”, 29-year-old Kate, has put her education
and life on hold in order to stay at home to care for her ungrateful younger
sister Bunny and her clueless scientist father. Dr. Battista is researching
autoimmune diseases, and he is on the verge of an important breakthrough – but he
is about to lose his star lab assistant, Pyotr, whose visa will soon expire.
Luckily, Dr. Battista comes up with an outrageous and absurd Shakespearean plot
to save the day! He begins a concerted effort to convince Kate that she must
marry Pyotr so he can stay in the country.
At this point, the novel veers into slapstick territory,
with predictable, silly twists and turns. I felt like I was reading a poorly
edited romance novel – where there was so much potential, we instead get
shallow, emotionless, silly scenes. Kate and her family became caricatures of
real people, and we never really get to see inside their heads. There is no
rationale for Kate’s spontaneous decision to go along with her father’s plan,
especially after it becomes unnecessary. Kate was immature to begin with,
almost like a sullen, socially-awkward teenager, but at least she was strong
and opinionated – full of vinegar, as the title suggests. But then she grows
into a weak, oppressed woman, becoming completely subservient to her husband
and father.
A modern retelling of The Taming of the Shrew has so much potential to confront the patriarchy
of the past and create a new story for feminism. Instead, this novel follows typical
Tyler themes of middle-class family and marriage. Kate even delivers a speech
about male tyranny and how women should be more understanding of how tough men
have it – meanwhile, she submits to Pyotr’s every decision and whim. Bunny, who
everyone treats as the empty-headed beauty, is actually the voice of reason
when she defends her sister’s independence, but of course she is ignored. The
only real modernization of the play can be found in the monologue, but even
that was a little too cutesy. The spark between Kate and Pyotr just never rang
true.
I think this could have been so much better with more
satire and sarcasm to add some edge. There were also other interesting themes
that could have been explored, such as Pyotr’s immigrant experience – instead,
his accent was mocked and he was treated like a Shakespearean fool. The
treatment was too surface-level, and the only convincing argument I’ve heard
for its shallow feeling is that it can be read as a redemption of Shakespeare’s
original play. Instead, I found it to be a “tamed” version of the play, with no
redeemable additions to the original. If you’re looking for a romantic beach
read this summer, you might enjoy this, just don’t expect Shakespeare.
I received this novel from Hogarth Press and
NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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