Have you ever heard the rumor that Shakespeare didn’t write his own plays? So had we, but By Any Other Name, the new novel by Jodi Picoult, may make the best case for it we have ever read. This novel puts forth a theory that Emilia Bassano wrote at least some of them, and she is an unforgettable character. This book succeeds on so many levels — a polemic, a great piece of feminist AND historical fiction, AND it’s a page turner. This is the book Jodi says she was born to write…and we think it’s her best to date.

Books mentioned in this week's episode:

By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
Mermaid by Jodi Picoult
Second Glance by Jodi Picoult
Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
The Pact by Jodi Picoult
The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult
House Rules by Jodi Picoult
Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
Where There’s Smoke by Jodi Picoult
Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult
Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult
A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult
The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult
Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult
Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult
Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult
Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult
Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult
Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult
Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks
Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie

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Jodi Picoult Envisions A Woman Behind Shakespeare's Work