Shylock Is My Name

Howard Jacobson Press Reviews

Inspired...It does what any good literary subversion should do: deepens and enhances one's appreciation of the original. -- James Lasdun - Guardian

Jacobson's writing is virtuoso. He is the master of shifting tones, from the satirical to the serious. His prose has the sort of elastic precision you only get from a writer who is truly in command ... There's also deep and sincere soul-searching going on here -- Lucasta Miller - Independent

A brilliant conceit... A powerful reimagining and reinvention of Shakespeare's character. -- Adam Lively - The Sunday Times

Howard Jacobson's reworking of The Merchant of Venice is a sly success... Irascible, eloquent Shylock is a man transplanted from the play to today. -- Tim Martin - Daily Telegraph

Shylock is My Name has much to tell us about loss, identity and modern antisemitism ... Simon's debates with Shylock, snapshots of a man haranguing his literary Creator, are the heart of this book, knowing and humane -- Kate Maltby - The Times

'Jacobson is quite simply a master of comic precision. He writes like a dream' Evening Standard

'The funniest British novelist since Kingsley Amis or Tom Sharpe' Mail on Sunday