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Past Tense

Shakespearean Women Get Their Own Story

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Rachel Brittain

Contributing Editor

Rachel is a writer from Arkansas, most at home surrounded by forests and animals much like a Disney Princess. She spends most of her time writing stories and playing around in imaginary worlds. You can follow her writing at rachelbrittain.com. Twitter and Instagram: @rachelsbrittain

Shakespeare has his reputation as a master of the English language for a reason. You don’t have your plays put on for centuries without due talent. But that’s not to say some of the plays don’t have their problems. Shakespeare was writing in the 1600s when Elizabeth I was queen of England and foul humours were thought to cause sickness. What I’m saying is, they didn’t exactly have everything figured out. Some of the plays hold up quite well, but others are rife with racism, antisemitism, and sexism that is decidedly unappealing to modern readers.

Fortunately, one of the beautiful things about literature is that it’s always being retold. Shakespeare himself was often retelling tales from history, mythology, and literature, so why shouldn’t his plays get the retelling treatment as well? It only seems fair. From Sapphic Shakespeare retellings to contemporary takes on the Bard, retellings can refresh Shakespeare’s stories in any number of ways. Especially for the characters who were, shall we say, done a bit dirty by the Bard, getting a fresh take is the least we could offer. They’re not substitutes for the originals but rather offer an enhanced reading experience for those who have already read Shakespeare and want to explore nuances and different takes. Retellings couldn’t exist without the originals.

So for the women who, particularly in Shakespeare’s tragedies, didn’t always get a chance to tell their own perspectives, these retellings about Shakespearean women set the story straight.

Bookish Goods

Picture of a black cauldron shaped mug engraved with the words "double double toil and trouble; fire burn, and cauldron bubble" in white

Toil and Trouble Mug from Gmdice

Who wouldn’t want to drink their morning coffee from a Shakespearean cauldron? $20

New Releases

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Queen Macbeth by Val McDermid

Release date: September 24, 2024

Unveiling the harsh realities of Medieval Scotland, Val McDermid reimagines a tale we think we know well. The first queen of Scotland, married to a man named Macbeth, is on the run, trying to outwit the endless plotting of power-hungry men. Her own cunning helped her win a crown, but now that crown might cost her her life. It’s a tale of Queen Macbeth as you’ve never seen her before.

Murder in Berkeley Square book cover

Murder in Berkeley Square by Vanessa Riley

Release date: September 24, 2024

Acclaimed historical fiction author Vanessa Riley pens a historical mystery about a woman who’s helped solve a number of criminal cases—but is barred from a dinner discussing such matters with men. When a blizzard strands all of the dinner guests together at the home of Lord Charles Duncan, Lady Abigail’s skills are put to the test. Two guests are soon found murdered. A killer is on the loose, quite possibly in this very house. If Abigail can’t get to the bottom of this mystery, and quick, the lives of those she cares about may also soon be forfeit.

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Fair Rosaline book cover

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Queen Hereafter book cover

Queen Hereafter by Isabelle Schuler

Determined to fulfill an ancient prophecy to reclaim the lands of her Pictish kin as queen, Gruoch leaves behind everything she knows, including her friend MacBethad, to marry Duncan. But the royal court is full of conniving forces and false friends. When a deadly turn forces her away, she’ll have to decide whether to fade into the shadows or take back her throne—and her vengeance—by any means necessary.

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Toni Morrison’s play about Othello‘s love, Desdemona, is an intimate affair, featuring a conversation between Desdemona and her African nurse Barbary. Though doomed, in Morrison’s play, Desdemona is given a voice again to speak on the injustices rife in the original telling. Speaking not only on race and gender, but class and war, Desdemona gives new life to an old story for a modern audience.


If you want to talk books, historical or otherwise, you can find me @rachelsbrittain on most social media, including InstagramGoodreads, and Litsy.

The Terracotta Bride book cover

Right now I’m reading The Terracotta Bride by Zen Cho.