Where There's a Will There's a Way: Or, All I Really Need to Know I Learned from Shakespeare

Naomi Brun is a librarian assistant in Communications and Community
Development at the Hamilton Public Library and a book reviewer for the
Hamilton Spectator.

In 1999, Laurie Maguire’s world fell apart. Her latest relationship
ended, her finances were in a shambles, and her cleaning lady threw out
the handwritten manuscript of her latest book. She declared the entire
year an “annus horribilus.” Being an English professor at Oxford
University, she found solace in books and spent many long hours in the
self-help section of her local bookstore. It wasn’t long before she
realized that she’d already read all the relevant bits before in
Shakespeare. As it turns out, the Bard and Dr. Phil have more in common
than many readers might think.

Where There’s a Will There’s a Way is a clear, concise presentation
of what Shakespeare and the likes of Dr. Phil have to say about the
human condition. Following the basic structure of self-help books,
Maguire has divided her work into 14 thematic chapters and ordered them
in such a way that one lesson flows smoothly into the next.
Consequently, the book should be read from start to finish, rather than
picked over randomly.

Maguire’s overall thesis seems to be that pain is largely a result of
misunderstanding, and that correct perception will always inform the
best course of action. In King Lear, for example, Cordelia’s response
might have been different if she truly understood her father’s
vulnerability. When the truth is ugly or hard to accept, such as the
news of Marina’s death in Pericles, Maguire urges forgiveness to
release the victim from a cycle of festering anger.

Where There’s a Will There’s a Way provides an interesting
alternative to traditional self-help. For those who love literature, it
may help to see one’s own crises mirrored in some of the world’s
best-loved plays. For those looking for concrete solutions, however, it
might be prudent to look elsewhere. Maguire’s work is full of
generalizations and short on concrete advice. In fact, her examples from
Shakespeare tend to illustrate what not to do, as in Cordelia’s
problematic reply when her father asks how much she loves him, rather
than to show a confused reader exactly what the right response would be.
The book is an excellent complement to, but no substitute for,
professional psychotherapy.