Written by Ian Doescher
ISBN 9781683691754
Published by Quirk Books, 2020
Genre Fiction/Verse
Awards and Honors n/a
Reading Level: ages 14 and up,
Plot Summary: The Taming of the Clueless is a Shakespearean adaptation of the 1995 movie, Clueless, which itself is an adaptation of the Jane Austen novel, Emma. Our lead character, Cher Horowitz, is a wealthy high schooler who lives in Beverly Hills with her lawyer father, Mel. She and her best friend, Dionne, are mostly concerned with shopping and popularity. Josh, her former stepbrother, visits often when he assists Mel with a case. Cher and Dionne decide on a new pet project: to makeover the new girl at school, Tai. But her project backfires and Cher has to do a little soul-searching to find out what is truly important to her.
Author Background: Ian Doescher has authored many other Shakespearian-style retellings of famous stories including Star Wars, Frankenstein, Back to the Future and, William Shakespeare’s Avengers: The Complete Works which will be released September 2021. Doescher holds a Ph.D. from Union Theological Seminary..
Critical Evaluation: Taming of the Clueless is a fun read although it retains some issue from Clueless. It tends to traffic in stereotypes of Middle Eastern men, gay men, and Hispanics, to name a few. Nonetheless, there are many Easter eggs that will engage astute readers such as "I will gladly pay you Tuesday for a beer today" and "Alcott [the name of the high school], father to some gifted women long ago." Even if the Easter eggs fly past, the reader will still enjoy this modern romp through Emma via Clueless via Shakespeare.
The book also contains a Reader's Guide that explains iambic pentameter, word play and other Shakespearean literary devices that Doescher employs.
Library Program: A table reading of this play, or scenes of this play would bring it alive for teens. Held during a Jane Austen week would help make the connection to the three connected works.
Speed-Round Book Talk: What happens when Emma mixes with Clueless and runs headlong icon Shakespeare? The Taming of the Clueless is what happens. As if!
Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation: Cher is the most privileged person in a very privileged world. Some might object to her blindness towards others, but that, in fact, is intrinsic to the plot. The stereotypes employed, as mentioned above, are frustrating and easily could have been omitted. Regardless, there are other books that have similar problems and the benefits of this one outweigh its weaknesses.
Reason for Inclusion: This play will appeal to a wide array of teens. Anyone who has seen or even heard of Clueless will want to pick this up. Jane Austen aficionados will also be interested as will patrons who enjoy Shakespeare's playfulness. Most importantly, it will help reluctant readers who are intimidated by Shakespeare's language through its modern storytelling, and the reader's guides are useful as well. Additionally, fans of Doescher's other works will want to check out this adaptation, too.
(Selected readings from The Taming of the Clueless begins at 7:40)
References
Doescher, I. About. iandoescher.com. https://iandoescher.com/about/
Quirk Books. (2020). The Taming of the Clueless, Presented by Quirk Books & The Show Must
Go Online . Youtube.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZpSmjADsV0
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