This summer, I read Then We Came to the End. I knew nothing about it except that it was supposed to be humorous.
I found it hysterical and compelling—but not in any obvious way. The most intriguing thing about it was the narrator. The narration is provided not by a third-person omniscient (or even limited omniscient) point of view—nor by a first-person protagonist or participant. Instead, the narrator is a collective first-person plural: "We" relates the story.
And it's done seamlessly. The reader almost doesn't notice as the novel takes us into the ups and downs of an advertising agency in New York City.
All of that is a great endorsement of the novel, and you all should read it. But if that isn't enough, there's also the Shakespeare. It's limited, but it's clever.
In this scene, the ad agency has been challenged to come up with public service ads that provide a humorous take on breast cancer.
One of the employees recalls a past triumph—when he consulted with his Uncle Max on a printer ink advertisement:
First, it's a great idea for an ad. Second, I'm fond of the Dickens / Shakespeare uncertainty.
There's only one more Shakespeare reference. It occurs late in the novel when the same employee is asked about the names of characters in a Shakespeare play:
It's just incidental—except that it gives a roundness to Jim's character. Having found Shakespeare useful in selling ink cartridges, he went further and decided to take a course.
Shakespeare . . . he gets the job done.
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(and to support Bardfilm as you do so).
(and to support Bardfilm as you do so).
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