Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Review: YOLO Juliet by William Shakespeare and Brett Wright

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I received this book for free from Random House in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review: YOLO Juliet by William Shakespeare and Brett WrightYOLO Juliet by Brett Wright, William Shakepeare
Published by Random House BFYR on May 26th 2015
Genres: Classics, Historical, Retellings, YA
Source: Random House
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three-stars

Romeo and Juliet, one of the greatest love stories ever told . . . in texts?!

Imagine: What if those star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet had smartphones? A classic is reborn in this fun and funny adaptation of one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays!

Two families at war.
A boy and a girl in love.
A secret marriage gone oh-so-wrong.

and h8. The classics just got a whole lot more interesting. 😉

tl;dr A Shakespeare play told through its characters texting with emojis, checking in at certain locations, and updating their relationship statuses. The perfect gift for hip theater lovers and teens.

A glossary and cast of characters are included for those who need it. For example: tl;dr means too long; didn’t read.

I admit, I loved reading the original Romeo and Juliet in school, but I know that for some people it isn’t something they enjoyed. I think that this was a fun way to get people interested in the basics of the story in a modern way. I thought the group texts and messages were entertaining. I especially loved all the emojis in it. I do have to say though, this is not a replacement for the original, but it was fun to read.

Everyone knows how the story goes. Star-crossed lovers ending in tragic death, but this book tells the story in a less morbid way. This is a kind of hard review to write since it’s not a typical book. I do think that for kids in school who don’t want to read this story, it’s a great way to get them into the story in a language that they understand. Bonus points for the key in the back because I had no clue what some of the stuff meant.

I can say that this was fun and entertaining. I did like it and it only took a short time to read. I think what the author did with this was a fun idea, but in no way a replacement for the real thing. If you have kids or friends (or anyone else) who isn’t into reading this classic, this is a good place to start. I have recommended it to some of my coworkers and they think it’s a fun idea too.

three-stars

3 Hot Espressos

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I'm no good at this, but I'm a mom of one little girl who really thinks she is a princess. I love reading all sorts of books (horror being a favorite genre of mine), love meeting new people, drinking lots of coffee, and eating chocolate. If you want to know anything else about me, just ask.
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5 Responses to “Review: YOLO Juliet by William Shakespeare and Brett Wright”

  1. Soudha Parsan

    This sounds like a fun, and creative too, spin on the original classic. I’m not sure if it’s something I would personally enjoy but I can see why some people would like it.

  2. Hannah

    I would probably have great fun with this, but at the same time, I’d be wary of people taking it too seriously, and be one of those old people talking about the TXTSPK-ificaiton of the younger generations, haha.

  3. Vane J.

    It sounds funny, but definitely something I would not enjoy. I *liked* the original classic, but not a lot. Great review, though.

  4. Jenna

    I saw this book in Barnes& Noble and was laughing to myself while reading the first couple pages. I’ve read the original a couple of times and (without reading the whole thing) I don’t think it would be able to capture everything Shakespeare wanted. Though it may be nice for middle schoolers, I think everyone should still read the original.

  5. Jeanna

    I want to read this… just for kicks cause I think this new “series” of books are hilarious. Srsly Hamlet, YOLO Juliet, and Macbeth #killingit have been on my radar for a long time. However, I definitely know what you mean by needing the key– there are too many texting terms to keep track of these days lol.

    Happy reading!