This is a very thought provoking book. Jodi Picoult brings to light the strong possibility that Shakespeare did not actually author his works. Strong evidence is presented in a wonderful retelling of the life of Emilia and the many generations later niece Melina. This book had me from the first page to the last. Highly recommend. I was given an advanced reader copy of this very well written book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

This book gave me all the feels, but doesn't Jodi always do that? Her novels are so thoroughly written and researched that to be engulfed in the story is inevitable. I've yet to read a book by her that doesn't put me directly into the story. I am trapped until I finish, and what a delightful stay I've had in these pages. This book made my theatre heart happy, it tackled issues of race and gender, particularly in the world of theatre, and it had some truly enjoyable characters with brilliant dynamics that I loved getting to know. When this book comes out, you'll want to grab a copy immediately!

Jodi Picoult never disappoints. Her books consistently tackle tough subjects and give readers new perspectives. The story follows two women, many years apart, who are related. Both are writers who are struggling with white male privilege. In present time, Melina is not able to get a play produced, even after being a star in her college program. Her roommate submits her play to a writing festival contest under a male name. When the play is chosen, Melina talks her roommate into pretending he is the author. As time goes on, the lies get out of control and Melina can't find a good time to come clean that she is the real author. In the past, Melina's ancestor Emilia is battling with the fact that women are not seen as equal to men. She feels she has no choices in her life and it is controlled by men. Emilia too is a writer and wants to write a play, but women are not able to do so. In order to have her writing seen, she convinces a playwright who is not good and unable to get his plays made on his own, to submit her work under his name. This playwright is Shakespeare. This story brings up many questions about whether or not Shakespeare was the true writer.

I am blown away! Jodi Picoult has done it again and this might just be my favorite title she has written. This story is broken into three parts - two interwoven narratives and excerpts from a play. The first is the perspective of Melina Green, a young aspiring playwright being denied opportunities in the theater which is dominated by white men. After finding her voice and writing a play that shared a very personal experience, she was judged harshly and criticized. She leaves the theater world, but the pull of a writer is undeniable and upon learning that she is related to Emilia Bassano, she jumps into a research project that leaves her stunned. Could Shakespeare actually be a woman? A woman who was able to express herself but remain hidden behind the name of a man? This brings us to the second narrative - that of Emilia herself.

I loved seeing the world through Emilia Bassano's eyes. My heart ached as I learned of her experience being a child abandoned by her family and sold as a courtesan to Lord Chamberlain who granted her access to theater in England. This extraordinary woman was barred opportunities to her own voice, but she bravely and wisely forged ahead, finding avenues to express herself and indelibly influence our world.

I learned so much about what it meant to be a woman during this time period and was fascinated by the exploration behind the man that Shakespeare was and the secrets that could be upholding his legendary status. I loved the research and facts that Picoult was able to weave into the narratives and find that my mindset is forever altered. It is frustrating to see that despite so much progress in our society, women still find themselves silenced or marginalized.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and Jodi Picoult for this advanced reader's copy. I enjoyed it immensely and look forward to seeing this book on shelves on August 20, 2024.

Jodi Picoult's latest is a little difficult to follow with different timelines; however, the subject is very interesting. The characters are very well developed. I'm curious to know how much of it is true. Her books anlway leave me with research to do! Any fans of Jodi Picoult will enjoy By Any Other Name.

Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for an ARC of this book for an honest review.
I think I have read all of Jodi Picoult’s books. This was a book about a woman back in the 1600’s and one in modern times. It was so interesting to read about a woman writing plays but using Shakespeare’s name because a woman’s writing would have never been accepted. I enjoyed that part of the book so much the characters came alive. It was obvious a lot of research was done on this book.

Jodi Picoult's latest novel seamlessly weaves together the stories of two women separated by centuries but bound by shared challenges in a male-dominated world. In a powerful blend of historical and women's fiction, the narrative explores themes of feminism, LGBTQ+ representation, and the struggle for recognition in the arts industry.

Melina Green, a budding playwright facing obstacles in the theater industry, submits her work under a male pseudonym and wins a contest, leading to a web of lies and complications. Meanwhile, Emilia Bassano, a talented woman in Elizabethan England, must compromise her identity to see her play performed, involving Shakespeare in a deception to gain recognition.

Through both timelines, Picoult delves into the enduring struggles faced by women and marginalized voices striving to be heard and acknowledged for their creative endeavors. "By Any Other Way" is a fresh, engaging, and well-researched novel that celebrates the resilience and aspirations of women throughout history. With compelling characters and thought-provoking storytelling, this book is a recommended read for fans of women's fiction seeking an inspiring and enlightening narrative.

Gratitude to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine Books for providing an advanced copy of this moving and resonant novel in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine for this advanced reader's copy. I have read all of Jodi Picoult's book. I am a superfan and so when I hear there is another Picoult book coming out, I try to get my hands on it to read it as soon as possible. Picoult always writes about an important and relevant issue. This book is no exception. I have been aware of many women having to write under a man's name to get published. I was not aware of the idea that William Shakespeare, himself, did not write all those plays, but in fact, they were written by a woman. The theory being there is no way Shakespeare could have written such complex and beautiful female characters when he did not educate his own daughters and they were illiterate. While this story, of course, is historical fiction, the characters from the 1500-1600's are quite real as well as women having to submit writing under a pseudonym to get their work out into the world. "For most of history, Anonymous was a woman." Virginia Woolf

This book is about a playwright, named Melina "Mel" Green, who has just written a new work inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. Emilia wrote many of the plays for Shakespeare as a way to make money to support herself and these were written based on what was going on in her life at the time, such as "As You Like It" or Romeo and Juliet". This book is told between the lives of Mel in present day and young Emilia's life through to her death. Some readers may not appreciate the Shakespeare prose scattered throughout, but it adds to the beauty of the story. Once again, Picoult tells a story filled with secrets and women empowerment with an issue at the crux of society.

By Any Other Name is an extraordinary story of a struggling playwright, Melina Green, who is having difficulty getting any of her work produced because of the fact that for the most part men dominate the industry. Through her father's genealogical studies, Melina finds out the is related to Emilia Bassano, who lived in the shadow of Queen Elizabeth's court, was the first female poet published in Elizabethan England, and who some believe might have been responsible for writing several poems and plays attributed to Shakespeare. At a young age Emilia was forced to become the consort of the queen's Lord Chamberlain, who was responsible for overseeing the theater productions for the queen's entertainment. He is kind to Emilia, and because of him Emilia is allowed more experience with literary endeavors, and begins to write for her own pleasure; at this time women were not allowed to have any literary voice of their own.
The story alternates between Melina's struggles to have her work be heard, and all of the trials and tribulations of Emilia's life and her pursuit of having her work heard by allowing it to be presented in Shakespeare's name. Emilia secretly gets help in that direction by Christopher Marlowe who appreciates her talent and determination, and Melina gets a boost from her best friend Andre who submits her play under a false name and then reluctantly pretends to be the author when it is selected to be performed. Both young women go through so many twists and turns and suffer setbacks and losses to get their voices heard, proving that even centuries later, women still struggle in many ways to have their work be known. There is so much more to the story than I have related here, everything makes these two women fully realized characters that the reader knows and cares for.

I've enjoyed so many Jodi Picoult books and was eager to dive into this one. It's a bit different than her others, but her characters are still rich and relatable. Emilia and Melina are powerful women looking for their place in the playwrighting world, one during Shakespeare's time and one modern-day. Melina discovers she's a distant relative of Emilia's and dives into her history.
Picoult makes it easy to switch between characters and times. It's evident Picoult did an incredible amount of research to tell the story of how Shakespeare may have had some help with his own plays.
I would recommend the book to friends who enjoy Picoult's writing, and those who are interested in Shakespearean themes.

I love reading Jodi Picoult books. This was very different from her normal topics and was a bit difficult to get into for me. I did enjoy the history and greatly appreciate the opportunity to read this book thanks to NetGalley. I will recommend it to my book club as we love to discuss books that bring great discussions and opinions.

Jodi Picoult never fails to amaze me and i have been reading her books since I was a teenager and i love that she went a different direction with her newest novel and have to admit that it was equally as great as her older books!

Thank you to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel.

I was so excited to receive an ARC of this novel, since Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors. To me, this was a very different novel for Ms. Picoult. I love historical fiction and dual timeline stories, so this one ticked all of the boxes for me. I had heard the idea of Shakespeare possibly not writing all of the plays credited to him, but the idea of a woman (Emilia Bassano) possibly being the author of some of his works was intriguing. I had not heard of Emilia Bassano before reading this novel and as I always do with books involving real people, I did some research to learn more about her. I also found the author's note at the end quite interesting. While I really enjoyed the book, I found that I liked the chapters about Emilia Bassano much more than the chapters in the modern timeline. It was a solid 4 stars for me.

I’ll admit it’s been over a decade since I read anything by Jodi Picoult. She was my favorite author in high school after reading My Sister’s Keeper for English class & I was even fortunate enough to interview her for a piece I wrote for the school paper.

I am so glad that I jumped back into reading her material and look forward to catching up on some of the books I have been missing out on.

Up to this point I had always brushed off the conspiracy theories that people spouted remarking that William Shakespeare didn’t write his own plays - even my husband has repeated this to me before and I never humored it in the slightest…but after reading this piece, I am 100% a believer. I believe that many of Shakespeare’s plays were written by women and it doesn’t take away from my enjoyment or appreciation for the work that was published under his name.

In this work of fiction - Picoult gives us dual POV between Melina in 2023 and Emilia in the 1500s. The two are distant relatives who are both playwrights. Melina writes a play about Emilia being one of the many women who had their plays published by Shakespeare during a time when women weren’t able to publish written works. There is so much compelling evidence within this piece - the reader can tell that this is a topic Picoult has strong feelings about. The book actually ends at 92% and there’s still 35+ minutes left of reading where you learn about Picoult’s perspective and motivation behind this piece.

I loved going back and forth between Melina and Emilia - I can’t choose which story I preferred. Both of them tugged at my heart and had me on an emotional rollercoaster filled with tears, rage, and laughter. You’ll have to pick this one up and experience it for yourself.


I would recommend this movie to folks who enjoyed the Barbie movie — if you loved the Barbie movie there’s no way you won’t love this feminist masterpiece just as much.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. I am so grateful I had the opportunity to read this one prior it its release - Jodi Picoult is consistent with the quality of her work.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll be honest, this just wasn’t my bag, baby. I knew it wouldn’t be from reading the description, but I wanted to give it a chance because in general I love Jodi Picoult. Some of her books have been too research-heavy for me - the one about wolves and the one about elephants come to mind - and this one definitely falls into that category as well. Don’t get me wrong, the writing is great and it’s clear she has a knack for doing research. But plot-wise, it just didn’t do it for me. I’m still giving it three stars because again, the writing itself was very good, and I did somewhat enjoy the plot set in present-day.

Well. Jodi Picault has officially written my most favorite book of 2023. I’ve read so many of her books over the years. And to write in a totally different genre (historical fiction) and do it just beautifully is a treat for this reader. Two time threads , each intriguing, make this a delight. If you’re a lover of Shakespeare, Ms Picaut’s take of true authorship of the plays is a tribute to the women who remained hidden in the depths of history. Read this and see!

I feel that Jodi is one of our best living writers. Her novels are always about compelling narratives and are well researched.
This one was skower than normal but still very good and I like the dual timelines
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review the book

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book. I love author Jodi Picoult’s work, but unfortunately this one was just not for me. It got off to a slow start and I could not seem to retain interest as it switched between timelines. I guess if you are a big Shakespeare fan it will hit the right notes. This one went in my didn’t finish pile. I will try it again when I have less on my mind.

Every time Jodi Picoult has a new book out, I am so excited. This was another wonderful addition to the collection. The thing I enjoy about her books is the connection to something (in this case Shakespeare) in different points in time. Thank so much for the opportunity to read this one.

By Any Other Name is a dual timeline novel that introduces the reader to a young playwright named Melina and a woman named Emilia living in the time of Shakespeare. This novel deals with the barriers women face in society both hundreds of years ago and today. It was a great read and thought provoking.