The Fool's Girl (2010)

While I do not necessarily agree with all of the decisions Rees made in her composition of this novel, I do think her interpretation was incredibly interesting. Her analysis of the hasty marriages between Viola & Orsino and Olivia & Stephano at the end of the play certainly seems spot on to me. Her use of Malvolio and Sir Andrew Agueface as harsh villains I have more trouble accepting. As I know the play so well, I have trouble picturing Malvolio without cross-gartered with yellow stockings and Sir Andrew as capable of using a sword.

Rees does a good job creating some of the atmosphere of the play and its characters (Feste in particular is spot on). The book is definitely less comedic though, so do not expect it to be just the same. Rees conveys the spirit of the time fairly accurately in most instances, although sometimes I wish she had not; I have trouble escaping my silly modern sensibilities, which feel that first cousins should in no instance have a romantic relationship (Oh wait, they're not silly: hemophilia). Cousins aside, this book is a great choice for any Shakespeare fans. I think Rees tackles of writing a sequel to the bard without being overly silly or overly pedantic. Check this one out, thou of good taste! ( )

Not impressed with this one at all. The writing is really beautiful with excellent description, but that's the only good thing about it. There's far too many characters, and none of them developed properly. I didn't like Feste's or Violetta's stories. I enjoyed Shakespeare's point of view at the start, but got bored of it by the end. The ending was very dull, and drawn out. Overall, it showed promise but didn't amount to much. ( )

As those familiar with Shakespeare can tell from the description, this book is spun around the comedic play, Twelfth Night. However, it is not a retelling (though a little is included) but an original account of what after the couples are wed. It is told mainly from the viewpoint of Violetta, Viola and the Duke’s daughter. She, and the fool Feste, fled from Illyria to England when their beloved homeland was under a horrific siege from Sebastian and Antonio. They came to London in search for the holy relic of Illyria which has been stolen by Malvolio (who seeks to rule Illyria as Duke). Without this relic, Violetta will not be able to reunite her country’s people and take the rightful place, by birth, as Duchess.

Shakespeare himself enters the story when Violetta seeks out his assistance. After telling him the story of her homeland, William feels compelled to aid her. Together they travel from London to Oxford to Stratford-upon-Avon in search of Malvolio and the relic. In their travels, Violetta meets friends from Illyria, falls in love and finds the courage to fight for her native land, while Shakespeare finds the inspiration that will become one of his greatest plays.

I’ve heard this from others, and I’m sadly going to have to agree: while Rees’s descriptions are amazingly beautiful and vivid, they do seem to be filler in place of character development. Even as I closed the book, I still couldn’t feel who Violetta was (or really anyone for that matter). There is nothing better than a book which leaves something with you, has you thinking about it for a time afterward, yet because I didn’t really get a full sense of the characters, I pretty much forgot about it once I closed the book.

While part of that is due to the character development, I think part was also due to my annoyance with how Sebastian was painted. Twelfth Night is one of my favorites, I love it dearly and I just could not get behind the idea of Sebastian being a scoundrel driven to villainy by jealousy. So envious of his wife’s close friendship with his sister (Viola) and his sister’s raised position as the Duchess that he would concoct a plan with Antonio, a pirate captain, to raid the city and become Duke himself. To someone would loves the play, I was left aghast at Sebastian’s turn of character.

I kept thinking to myself, “how in the world is this supposed to be Shakespeare influence for Twelfth Night?” That’s not to say that Rees’s story is bad, no, it was quite compelling. I just couldn’t grasp how Shakespeare would have taken something so horrific and turned it into something comedic. Then of course, it isn’t Violetta’s story Will tells in Twelfth Night, but Viola and Sebastian‘s, so perhaps I’m wrong for even pondering that. It was just sad to see my beloved Sebastian turn into such a villain.

I don’t want to be discouraging, The Fool’s Girl is a good read and I admire how Rees took something comedic and weaved such a dramatic after story for it, but I went into it expecting something lighter so I was a tad disappointed in that sense.

Rating: 3 tulips out of 5

http://www.read-all-over.net/fiction/ya/the-fools-girl-by-celia-rees/ ( )

Reviewed by LadyJay for TeensReadToo.com

Violetta and her companion, Feste, are far away from home. Memories of Illyria and the state in which they left the country haunt their dreams. Their quest is daunting - perhaps impossible.

An ancient relic, considered sacred by the Illyrian people, has been stolen. The evil Malvolio has left Illyria in shambles and run off with the holy artifact. It is Violetta's duty as noblewoman to restore Illyria to greatness, but can it be done?

Violetta and Feste must devise a plan, and they will need the help of many people to complete their task.

Celia Rees has put an interesting spin on Shakespeare's TWELFTH NIGHT. The story is told from several different characters point of view, including that of William Shakespeare himself. In exchange for Violetta's story, Shakespeare vows to help her find the missing relic and deliver her safely back to Illyria.

Young female readers will appreciate Violetta's strength and courage. She is willing to do anything to restore her country and its people. This is definitely a great addition to Rees' already outstanding body of work. ( )

i got this as a gift and i really enjoyed reading it . it wonders of subject a little but then it gets good again . good booooook :)