Review of Boy by Nicole Galland

Galland offers a detailed peek into the London of Shakespeare's company and the life of starring "boy player" Alexander Cooke, his best girl Joan, who dresses as a boy to explore scientific pursuits, and the palace intrigue that occurs when their allies conflict with Queen Elizabeth.

In Nicole Galland's historical fiction tale Boy, Alexander "Sander" Cooke is a famed, sought-after "boy player" in Shakespeare's company, and his roles skillfully playing lovely women have led highbrow ladies and gentlemen alike to seduce him with favors and attention. His apprenticeship is nearly over, and he has neither an assurance of steady work as a young man playing male roles with his company, nor a sponsor to support him.

Joan Buckler is Sander's best friend. She's curious about everything and is the smartest person Sander knows. But her female sex holds her back from being able to find the knowledge she seeks, and she dresses as a boy to gain access to medical lectures and more.

Philosopher Francis Bacon allows Joan to learn and contribute more to experimental learning than she could have dreamed. She becomes invaluable to Bacon's pursuits, and in boy's dress she has freedoms she never could during the era as a young woman. But their links to Bacon--along with Sander's links to Essex, who is on the outs with Queen Elizabeth, lead the two to deeper links to Queen Elizabeth's court, into political intrigue, and to dangerous undertakings that place them in grave danger.

I wished for more behind-the-scenes peeks at Shakespeare's shows, and I was least interested in the political conflicts and drama, although they were essential to the conflict of the book. I loved the romantic connection between Joan and Sander, Joan's scientific pursuits--particularly the botany-related efforts she enters into with her eccentric friends, and how Galland deftly places the reader in the story's place and time with rich details.

I listened to Boy as an audiobook.

More about the Author

Nicole Galland is also the author of The Fool's Tale; I, Iago; Revenge of the Rose; Godiva; and Crossed: A Tale of the Fourth Crusade.