#BookReview ‘Much Ado About Mean Girls’ by Ian Doescher

About the book…

Huge thanks to Jamie-Lee at Quirk Books for my gifted copy of ‘William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Mean Girls’

Power struggles. Bitter rivalries. Jealousy. Betrayals. Star-crossed lovers. When you consider all these plot points, it’s pretty surprising William Shakespeare didn’t write ‘Mean Girls’.

But now fans can treat themselves to the epic drama–and heroic hilarity–of the classic teen comedy rendered with the wit, flair, and iambic pentameter of the Bard. Our heroine Cady disguises herself to infiltrate the conniving Plastics, falls for off-limits Aaron, struggles with her allegiance to newfound friends Damian and Janis, and stirs up age-old vendettas among the factions of her high school.

Best-selling author Ian Doescher brings his signature Shakespearean wordsmithing to this cult classic beloved by generations of teen girls and other fans. Now, on the 15th anniversary of its release, ‘Mean Girls’ is a recognized cultural phenomenon, and it’s more than ready for an Elizabethan makeover.

Cleverly melding classic playwriting with a modern,iconic movie, Ian has created a really funny and witty reproduction. It reads exactly like the plays you remember-and probably dreaded-at school and is illustrated throughout. For those who might be put off, fear not, it may be set out like a play but as you read, you inevitably see the entire film play out in your mind’s personal cinema.

Basically it’s like reading a screenplay!

”Pink is the pigment of a welcomed soul.
Pink is the cheek that blusheth when in love.
Pink is the underside of newborn feet.
Pink is the lush camellia on the bush.”

I absolutely loved the ‘Shakespeare does Star Wars’ series-to me they are the right length and the central joke of both series is neither belaboured nor overdone. This is purely a fan’s response to cultural icons and also a reminder about the universality and longevity of Shakespeare’s themes.

“Nay, Gretchen. Fetch shall never catch.
Stop hosting an event no one attends.”

The bard may be enough to make people groan but taking this beloved classic and applying modern mores actually makes you understand the film better as well as teasing the reader into finding out more about Shaespeare.

The plays of England’s most well known and revered writer were made for as wide an audience as possible, they were made to be watched and enjoyed en masse, they were not the remit of the rich and privileged. In his books, Ian Doescher is bridging the gap by exploring the modern phenomenons of cliques, high school adolescence and peer pressure by comparing it to, amongst others, ‘‘Much Ado About Nothing’, ‘The Tempest, and ‘Romeo And Juliet’.

Whilst laughing at Sheakespeare-d classic lines of dialogue, the reader is taking in the features of the writing (for example, iambic pentameter and the Shakespearean sonnet) so whilst it does not take long to read, this short book leaves a lasting impression.

I for one loved it and am very much looking forward to ‘MacTrump’!

About the author…

Ian Doescher is a US-American fiction writer known for his 2013 bestselling debut Science fiction novel William Shakespeare’s Star Wars, a retelling of George Lucas epic Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in the blank verse style of Shakespeare. Since then he has tackled 8 of them! 8!! Plus the Pop Shakespeare series which include ‘Much Ado..’ and ‘Get Thee Back To The Future’ He’s a Portland native, and lives in Portland with his spouse and children.

Twitter @iandoescher

Links-http://www.iandoescher.com/

https://www.hypable.com/much-ado-about-mean-girls-jingle-bell-rock/