Welcome to Litsy!

Black History Month and this retelling of Othello is ser in 70s Washington, a group of 11 year old at school when a new student arrives.
Cleverly done, effective in making the reader consider how outsiders can be treated.

@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
@Eggs
#FallTreasures

Day 1 - #SchoolDays

This book is a retelling of Othello and it's set in an american school during '70s.

It's a nice retelling, quite similar to the original one.
I still feel so sorry for Desdemona and Otello and their love 😭

I'm not sure if I'm really going to spend my afternoon with this one... I should finish #Therailwayman... Idk what to do 😅

#othellorevisited #tracychevalier #ebook #newboy

I‘ve never read Othello, so I didn‘t know how this was going to turn out. As awful as the racism and bullying was from the kids, I was shocked at it from the teachers! Although I really enjoyed the book (and hated Ian!), I was surprised at the abrupt ending. I didn‘t like the end. Often that brings down my rating, but I decided to leave it as I thought all the way through, as I was reading. Although disappointed with the end, I really enjoyed it.

I haven‘t read or seen Othello, so I don‘t know if New Boy is a good retelling. I found it very readable, but it felt more like a YA novel than literary fiction. The characters didn‘t really sound like 6th graders and it was hard to believe that everything happened a few hours. I also would have preferred if an author of colour had written it. Criticism aside, I still flew threw this and enjoyed it for the most part?! Idk. 3.5⭐️ My #bookspin pick.

Here is my card for #BookSpinBingo! My #BookSpin pick is New Boy, while by #DoubleSpin pick is White Bird. I‘m leaving the free spaces empty, so I can fill them in as I go. Can‘t wait! 😊

More from the Hogarth Shakespeare series: a retelling of Othello as a day at school for a group of 6th graders. It felt very trivialized and a bit awkward for such a strong original story, although I suppose it could be said that children play out adult situations in their own way. And I don‘t know if the Shakespeare plays are assigned to authors or if authors get to pick, but I‘d rather have read a retelling of Othello by a black author.

I had high hopes for this one, but it rather disappointed. I‘m not convinced the cramming the essence of Othello into timeline of a single day didn‘t work, and I don‘t recall 6th graders kids being so sexually aware in the 70s as they are in this book. The sexualisation of preteens was just in the forefront of my mind all the way through the book.

1. I‘m a sucker for a pretty cover;

2. Tagged - next month‘s book club read;

3. Mostly the breaking news updates on my phone, and scrolling through Twitter;

4. Depends on the day and whether my boyfriend has stayed at my place. I‘m up at the first alarm if I‘m on my own.

5. If you haven‘t already played, consider yourself tagged!!

#FriYayIntro @howjessreads @4thhouseontheleft

Only going with so-so because I like Chevalier. These kids didn‘t sound like kids, the adults were really flat and uninspired, and while this was supposed to take place in one day during the 1970‘s, it dragged in places and rushed in others so it came across as very disjointed. I applaud the effort to tell a story about racism, preconceptions, and stereotypes, but this #Othello retelling falls flat for me.

#retelling #Shakespeare

I really appreciated this modern retelling of Othello, and I was surprised to see so many critical reviews on Goodreads. Seeing all the appreciation for the book on Litsy is just another reason to love this book community! The way NEW BOY is set in a school with children, and particularly the way much action takes place on the schoolyard, emphasizes the way structural racism operates. Now, I should go back to reread Othello.

The Shakespeare nerd in me is gathering my supplemental reading materials for my IRL book club selection for February!

#Hogarth #LitsyLovesShakespeare

I've been enamoured with Chevalier's work since Girl With a Pearl Earring and have been waiting for her to deliver something just as captivating and she does just this with New Boy. Chevalier doesn't shy away from the huge undertaking/responsibility of retelling Shakespeare's Othello—her compact version delivers a sucker punch and I encourage you to pick it up.

This is an interesting retelling of Othello that was eerily close to home for me. I was a bussing kid in the D.C. area in the ‘70s and experienced some of the racism and violence and bullying that Chevalier uses in her plotline. Luckily nothing as violent as this, but we‘re talking Shakespeare here. As I read, I could see this as a staging of the play, much more so than some of the other retellings in the series. Interesting read for Bard lovers.

There is a lot to like and a lot to dislike in this one. This is a retelling of Othello set in 1970s DC in a 6th grade classroom (like). It takes place in one day (dislike). The setting helps shape some of the strange leaps that Othello makes and makes them more palatable. The racism is ramped up, but to be honest I wonder if it would have been stronger if an author of color wrote it. I liked the school setting, but it was similar to the movie O

An excellent read from Hogarth Shakespeare. A retelling of Othello. Short and intense, I loved it ❤️📚

I wanted to like this more than I did. I think the characters just became too one dimensional, with the story of Othello played out in a 1970s middle school. It was both too much and not enough.

This might be a test of how much I remember of Othello.

An excellent reworking of ‘Othello‘, set in an elementary school in Washington DC. Marvellously observes and elegantly written, this is a great success, and my favourite volume so far in the Hogarth Shakespeare series to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Bard‘s death. #tracychevalier #newboy #shakespeare #hogarthshakeapeare #williamshakeapeare #othello #racism #prejudice #school #hatred #envy #jealousy #1974

Really caught up in this marvellous retelling of Othello, set in a Washington elementary school in 1974. Excellently written, and utterly engrossing. #tracychevalier #newboy #williamshakespeare #othello #washingtondc #1974 #literature #hogarthshakespeare #shakespeare #politics #racism #antisemitism #prejudice #workdbookday2018

Starting this new Hogarth retelling of Othello . . . Sounds good!

Froedrick thinks it‘s too early on a Sunday for anything new. But I‘m into a new book, New Boy.
Happy Sunday Littens!
#Froedrick

Dang! I feel so uncomfortable after reading this. I know racism is persistent but to see it play out this way was difficult. I‘m especially ashamed of Mr. Brabant.
#finishingfebruary #MountTBRChallenge

#bookstagramchallenge #currentread #bookstagram #RiotGrams @bookriot

Even after participating in the #bookmarkswap and receiving some lovely bookmarks, look what I ended up using last night. The hair elastic I took out at bedtime! Does anyone else just grab whatever is nearby? @ferskner
#toolazytogetupandgetabookmark

While some elements didn‘t work for me, Chevalier captured the dreadful tragedy that unfolds for Othello and transposed it to sixth graders in DC in the ‘70‘s. I love the Hogarth renditions and Othello is a favorite so I‘m glad to have read it. Just not sure my school playground was ever this vicious!

“Never judge a book by its cover”
My son (8) immediately saw two entwined hands on this cover. I hadn‘t seen that. I always examine a cover after reading a book and see so much more in it than at first glance. This might be why I despise movie covers so much! How closely do you examine covers?
#tuesdaytidbit

I really enjoyed this book. Its my first book by Tracy Chevalier and I will definitely read more by her. I haven't read Othello but I don't think that detracts from my enjoyment of the book but it might have made an interesting comparison.

Due to a mail snafu, this gem of a package arrived a bit late, but @ferskner is a great swap partner and sent fabulous goodies! Books from my TBR, a gorgeous card of Falling Water and such pretty floral bookmarks. Oh, and a bookmark with macaroons that look good enough to eat! Thank you, Ann!!! #bookmarkswap #litsybookmarkswap #shouldneverlosemypageagain

My reaction to my child today when he interrupted my reading for the GAZILLIONTH time.

Not my best parenting day ever. 😫

(From the Cat Utopia Facebook page.)

That cover. ❤️🖤

I liked this one. Chevalier covered the plot of Othello well and provided insights about racism and being an outsider.

However, the story of Othello set amongst 11 year-old American students in the 1970s didn‘t work as well for me. I was an unsheltered 11 in the 80s, and I don‘t remember such strong sexual undertones amongst my playmates. Had the author set her story with 13 or 14 year-olds it would have felt more true.

Took me a while to get through this. I enjoyed it but it wasn‘t captivating.

Transport Shakespeare's Othello to a day in a school yard in 1970's Washington DC. I found this to be a quick, absorbing read. Not a perfect rework but compelling. Tracy Chevalier deals with heavy, raw emotions. Her setting allows the exploration of a spectrum of racial attitudes - sympathic, curiosity, hatred. I felt my heart breaking more than once while reading.

New morning, new book, New Boy.

This is the first book I've read the Hogarth Shakespeare series and while it was well written and engaging I feel that the cast as 6th graders wasn't believable.

The rest of my night is devoted to tea and this book from my library haul. ☺️

I really did not like this one. The tone, the setting, the voice of the supposed 6th graders, it‘s all wrong. It feels forced and inauthentic. (Can you tell I hated it?)

Othello in a 1970‘s playground. This caught my eye in the Library today.

What do you listen to when you read or write? 🌷

I really liked this book, and I am not always a fan of the retelling of Shakespeare's works. This book is about what would happen if Othello was a schoolboy. I loved the character development and the way the story takes place over the course of one day of school. It was a fast paced read, but sometimes difficult because of the themes of power, bullying and racism.

Such a lovely reimagining of Othello. I love the Hogarth series and this one doesn't disappoint.

This retelling of Othello def made me think. The blatant racism is even more uncomfortable in the middle school setting. You want to right it off as kids are just terrible to one another, but you see the adults acting the same way & feeding the kids racism rather than correcting it, which makes you look closer @ yourself for making excuses for the kids. I did want more nuance in the retelling not just an overlay of the original to a new setting.

Taking an afternoon coffee break with a good book. This is the second book I've read by Tracy Chevalier, and I really enjoy her writing and characters.

Courtyard reading at lunchtime while it's still warm enough to sit outside.

If my life had a flavor, it would be #coffee & overdue books 😆♥️

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This week I'm concentrating on reading #librarybooks so that I can avoid overdue fees.
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#NewBoy by #traceychevalier is a retelling of #othello set in a 6th grade classroom. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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#Agingout by #altoncarter is a true story from an #Oklahomaauthor about aging out of the foster care system but not being prepared in any way & living with the demons of his childhood.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#PSL season is here #pumpkinspicelatte or #pleasesendliterature 😆♥️
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Day 7 of #melandprireadathon is hype or obscure - BOTH! A resounding and loud both. Basically all the books! I want to read the ones everyone is talking about & the ones hidden in library shelves just waiting to be discovered!
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I'm about 130 pages away from the end of my 5 books! This morning I'm going to try finish!
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What are you currently reading?