Elizabeth the First Wife

A thirtysomething community college Shakespeare professor is unexpectedly drawn into a celebrity Shakespeare festival when her ex-husband (college sweetheart who later became a movie star) asks for her help in making sure he comes off looking like an Oscar-type actor. Hijinks ensue. Not only is it a fun story, but the chapters are interspersed with pages from Elizabeth’s book in progress, in which she relates Shakespearean characters to current pop culture. The Macbeths, for instance, are compared to “the Reagans, the Clintons, the Eminems, the Jolie-Pitts.” The ending is satisfying, but does drag a bit.

I really enjoyed this light read about community college professor Elizabeth Lancaster. Her specialty, Shakespeare, takes center stage in what becomes of story of family and her own journey to personal success in a very overwhelming family. Dolan comes from a large family too, so I imagine much of the interplay could be from real events! Elizabeth's two sisters, Nobel prize winning (and tennis loving) dad, overachieving/interfering mom, action star ex-husband and step-niece Maddie play all of their parts very well as the action moves from Pasadena to the Shakespeare festival in Ashford, Oregon. If only all the pieces of our busy lives could really fall into place so easily!

I struggled getting though this book. I don't know what the hard part was, but I didn't really like this book.