Shakespeare's Scribe

Reader Response to Shakespeare's Scribe by Gary Blackwood

Inside cover reads:
"There's an outbreak of the dreaded Black Plague in London, and the Globe Theatre has been closed by order of teh queen. But the show must go on-- so William Shakespeare's players are off on a wild adventure across England. they'll travel from town to town and perform plays to survive. And Widge, the orphan-turned-actor, gets to go along, too. Widge doesn't mind- the life of an actor suits him. Earlier, he had been forced by a cruel master to use "charactery" (his rare skill at shorthand) to steal Hamlet. Instead of stealing the play, Widge joined the players! And he'll do anything to stay with them. The journey holds excitement, turmoil, and mystery at every crossroads. Mr. Shakespeare breaks his arm in a bralw and needs Widge's character so he can finish a play for the queen. But even being Shakespeare's scribe can't take the sting out of losing roles to a sly and talented new apprentice who seems determined to oust him. But then Widge meets someone who claims to know a secret about his past. Can it be that eh'll find his real family after all this time? And does this mean he will leave the theatre--possibly forever? But all's well that ends well in this Elizabethan escapade, one as rich in drama, poignancy, and comic high jinks as the first."

Rxn:

Blah. Apparently this is the second book in a series of three, but i didn't notice it until i finished the book. There are a few characters that you aren't introduced to properly because it's assumed that you've read the first book. It's actually not too bad to just pick up and read by itself. The book certainly lacks a few things. Blackwood's attempts at Elizabethan colloquialisms, local color accent, and dialog are mediochre at best. He also needs to pick up the pace with his action a bit. The book drags in spots. It was most certainly not well written at all. It wasn't really the most thrilling thing I've read, either. There are a lot of anticlimactic moments. Sorry, no word nerd seal of approval here. it is great in the fact it makes Shakespeare more human.... but we don't really learn too much about him other than the fact that he has a brother named Ned and has a palpatory fixation with his earring. The more I think about it, the more i dislike it.

Quotes (not many worth recording here):

"Odd as it may seem, there is a satisfaction unlike any other in creating an imaginary world and in pretending to be someone you are not. That in itself may be a sign of insanity" (7).

"Never attempt to write a play. [...] They always betray you. When you're only imagining them, they seem so ideal, so full of promise and possibility. Then, when you try to get them down on paper, they turn on you and refuse to life up to your expectations" (174).

"When I stepped through the doorway, the boys, who were playing in the main hall, spotted me at once and descended on me like wild Irishmen, crowing with delight" (233).

"I felt more the way one feels when he is just on the treshold of waking. Although he is still within the imaginary world conjured up by his sleeping mind, sounds and such from the real world intrude and influence the course of the dream" (263).