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lottepot's review
3.0
I always love Marie Phillips' books - they are such a treat and it makes me so sad that I've read them all! I'll have to reread the previous two and savour them. This was fun, a few editing mistakes here and there but an enjoyable read.
cissy_'s review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
smisaacs's review against another edition
2.0
*2.5 stars. The premise was great, the execution was flawed. I am disappointed because I had really high expectations after reading “gods behaving badly”. This is a fun little book and was a good brain break.
fiendfull's review
3.0
Oh, I Do Like To Be... is a comic romp that takes the plot of The Comedy of Errors and makes it about modern day Shakespeare clones. Billy was cloned from Shakespeare and his sister Sally was cloned from a hair on the seat of a bus. Together they've just arrived in a seaside town, where Billy wants to work on his writing in the hope of completing a play. Instead, they run into Bill and Sal, who seem to be remarkably similar to them, and things are about to get very confusing as Billy deals with Bill's wife and lover and nobody can work out who they're talking to.
This is a novel that does exactly what it says on the tin. Phillips plays around with a sackful of Shakespeare references, a lot of mistaken identity, and some ice-creams to create this modern version of one of Shakespeare's more annoying works. In fact, Phillips does much like what Shakespeare did to create The Comedy of Errors out of Plautus' Menaechmi, though Shakespeare added a second pair of twins and Phillips doesn't add a third (though does add cloning). If you find The Comedy of Errors and/or Menaechmi infuriating (as I do), you may want to give this one a miss because uses the same comic device in the same way.
However, if you can get past that, it is a purposefully silly novel that doesn't try and take itself seriously, but does manage to get in a lot of references to Shakespeare and his works. Due to the naming differences, it is actually easier to read and work out who is who than might be expected, and its short length, setting, and comedy would make it a good light holiday read.
This is a novel that does exactly what it says on the tin. Phillips plays around with a sackful of Shakespeare references, a lot of mistaken identity, and some ice-creams to create this modern version of one of Shakespeare's more annoying works. In fact, Phillips does much like what Shakespeare did to create The Comedy of Errors out of Plautus' Menaechmi, though Shakespeare added a second pair of twins and Phillips doesn't add a third (though does add cloning). If you find The Comedy of Errors and/or Menaechmi infuriating (as I do), you may want to give this one a miss because uses the same comic device in the same way.
However, if you can get past that, it is a purposefully silly novel that doesn't try and take itself seriously, but does manage to get in a lot of references to Shakespeare and his works. Due to the naming differences, it is actually easier to read and work out who is who than might be expected, and its short length, setting, and comedy would make it a good light holiday read.
karenhopperusher's review
5.0
Fun, short, with some sweet insights. Couldn’t put it down. Finished in one night.
shelfofunread's review
3.0
Combining Marie’s talent for screwball comedy with the plot of Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors, this is a madcap combination of mistaken identity, some dodgy genetic experimentation, the bard’s finest phrasing, and the pleasures of the English seaside resort.
Clones Billy and Sally are blissfully unaware of fellow clone twins Bill and Sal’s existence. All they want is a cheap B&B, an ice cream, and somewhere inspirational for Billy to write his West End debut. But when Billy is found by Sal and not Sally and taken home to his clone’s long-suffering wife Thandie, he quickly ends up in over his head. Because Bill has secrets and, in his efforts to extricate himself from the situation and reunite with Sally, Billy is going to plunge headlong into all of them!
Full of madcap characters, improbable situations and hilarious misunderstandings, this is a short, fun riot of a book that is packed to brimming with Shakespeare references and glossed with Marie’s spirited wit. When I started the book I was worried that I would find the Billy/Bill, Sally/Sal dynamic difficult to follow but, as with the Shakespeare play from which it borrows, Marie’s pared-back prose and eye for detail mean that it’s easy to follow who’s who, allowing me to sit back and enjoy the farcical comedy that ensued when Bill and Billy’s lives become entwined.
If mishaps, identity swapping and The Comedy of Errors aren’t for you, then you might not get the humour in Oh, I Do Like to Be but if (like me) you enjoy the occasional Ealing comedy then there’s plenty of belly-laughs to be had here.
Oh, I Do Like To Be is one of those books that does what it says on the tin – funny, smart and a little bit ridiculous all at the same time. Perfect for gulping down in one sitting on a gloomy afternoon, this is a delightful read for cheering up a cold day!
This review was first published on my blog, The Shelf of Unread Books at https://theshelfofunreadbooks.wordpress.com/2019/01/29/blog-tour-review-oh-i-do-like-to-be-by-marie-phillips/, as part of the blog tour for Oh, I Do Like to Be. My thanks go to the publisher for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest and unbiased review.
Clones Billy and Sally are blissfully unaware of fellow clone twins Bill and Sal’s existence. All they want is a cheap B&B, an ice cream, and somewhere inspirational for Billy to write his West End debut. But when Billy is found by Sal and not Sally and taken home to his clone’s long-suffering wife Thandie, he quickly ends up in over his head. Because Bill has secrets and, in his efforts to extricate himself from the situation and reunite with Sally, Billy is going to plunge headlong into all of them!
Full of madcap characters, improbable situations and hilarious misunderstandings, this is a short, fun riot of a book that is packed to brimming with Shakespeare references and glossed with Marie’s spirited wit. When I started the book I was worried that I would find the Billy/Bill, Sally/Sal dynamic difficult to follow but, as with the Shakespeare play from which it borrows, Marie’s pared-back prose and eye for detail mean that it’s easy to follow who’s who, allowing me to sit back and enjoy the farcical comedy that ensued when Bill and Billy’s lives become entwined.
If mishaps, identity swapping and The Comedy of Errors aren’t for you, then you might not get the humour in Oh, I Do Like to Be but if (like me) you enjoy the occasional Ealing comedy then there’s plenty of belly-laughs to be had here.
Oh, I Do Like To Be is one of those books that does what it says on the tin – funny, smart and a little bit ridiculous all at the same time. Perfect for gulping down in one sitting on a gloomy afternoon, this is a delightful read for cheering up a cold day!
This review was first published on my blog, The Shelf of Unread Books at https://theshelfofunreadbooks.wordpress.com/2019/01/29/blog-tour-review-oh-i-do-like-to-be-by-marie-phillips/, as part of the blog tour for Oh, I Do Like to Be. My thanks go to the publisher for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest and unbiased review.
fellfromfiction's review
5.0
Brilliantly silly. Sharp jokes, clever insights, and a farce worthy of the Bard himself.
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