A 21st century mash-up of Shakespeare’s "Twelfth Night" and "Catch-22," "What You Will On Capitol Hill" provides a worm’s-eye view of life in the nation’s capital.
It begins with the panicky thoughts in an actor’s head as the curtain rises on a performance of "Twelfth Night" at which most of the characters – senators, slam poets, billionaires, mercenaries, actors, lobbyists – are either performers in the play or members of the audience.
Karen is a peace lobbyist desperate to put forward an amendment that might entice military contractors into building infrastructure rather than weapons. Jonathan is an actor whose big break may be happening that night as an understudy in the play. Harry, an unlucky-in-love Shakespeare scholar, falls for a best-selling travel writer sitting next to him. János, a jaded Hungarian diplomat, and Bartholomew, an uber-confident slam poet, are both blindsided with passion for the leading actors on stage.
Love, lust, mistaken identities and valiant idealism draw this unlikely grab bag of lovers – ranging in age from twenty to eighty – into lobbying for Karen’s bill. Their efforts bring exuberant romantic entanglements as each confronts the quandaries of opposing war and discovering love in a world of armed drones and random emoticons.
PRAISE
Richard Tillotson tells a delightful story of love and politics. How do lovers, young and old, find each other in the tech-mad 21st century? How to give peace a chance? What You Will on Capitol Hill is a playful field guide to lobbying the government and to wooing hearts.
– Maxine Hong Kingston
Author of "Woman Warrior" and "The Fifth Book of Peace"
Lives and philosophies collide, leading to romantic infatuations, rivalries and self-revelation. Tillotson’s commentary on the performative aspects of politics, media and even personal relationships is as astute as it is timely. . . . Tillotson’s dark humor and satire are also delightful.
– Kirkus Reviews
A terrific job! These are authentic characters, and the description of the lobbying process fits well with what I have experienced on the Hill. An opening line in one of Martin Luther’s books says, "Only humor and ridicule will drive out the devil." I think the serious but humorous love stories in this novel may make the devil uncomfortable.
– Joe Volk
Executive Secretary Emeritus, Friends Committee on National Legislation
