Even those who are not Shakespeare aficionados are probably familiar with one of his most vaunted tales - The Taming Of The Shrew. Whether seen on stage or on screen folks love it and that may well be the reaction to Pulitzer Prize winner Anne Tyler’s whimsical take on the story.
Kate Battista is a preschool assistant who is apparently undervalued by her father, her younger sister, Bunny, and most available men. Dad is a scientist who firmly believes that his research will prove groundbreaking if he can just keep his lab assistant, Pyotr Shcherbakov. Problem is Pyotr’s visa is near expiration - how to keep him in the country?
Dad thinks the obvious solution is for Kate to marry Pyotr. And in order to convince her to take a walk down the aisle he reminds Kate in his own tactful way that she isn’t exactly surrounded by suitors while her not-half-as-bright sister has boys lined up at the door even though she’s still in high school. Obviously Kate is hurt by her father’s thoughtfulness, and Pyotr doesn’t seem to quite understand the plan (he finds it a strange cultural system).
Ultimately Vinegar Girl evolves into a kind of love story. Can Kate resist the efforts of these two men to see her wed? Tyler’s humor takes center stage in this tale masterfully read by Kirsten Potter.
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