Letters to Juliet by Lise Friedman, Ceil Friedman

***Purchased through Barnes and Noble
Synopsis

The enduring legend of Shakespeare’s pair of star-crossed lovers draws millions of visitors to Verona, Italy, each year. But that is just part of the story. Every day, letters, frequently addressed simply, “Juliet, Verona,” arrive in the city. They come by the truckload, in almost every language imaginable, written by romantics seeking Juliet’s counsel. Most of the missives talk of love, of course —love found and love lost, love sought and love remembered. And, amazingly, not one letter goes unanswered.

Letters to Juliet tells the story of these letters and the volunteers who have been writing responses for more than seven decades —volunteers who first acted privately, and who are now sanctioned by the city of Verona as part of the Juliet Club. Featuring more than seventy-five heartfelt letters, this poetic book retraces the history behind Shakespeare’s tale and tours the monuments that have fueled the world's enchantment with Juliet and her Romeo.

My Review Comments:

I saw the movie that this book was based on and it is nothing like the book. This book takes you into the part of the movie that you wanted to explore the most of, which is the Club Di Giuletta, the room with Juliet’s Secretaries and how they came to be. It is their story that is so engaging to me. The letters that are sprinkled throughout the book were so precious and filled with little gems of treasures. I couldn’t wait to read them to discover what the responses would be from Juliet’s Secretaries.

A group of women over the span of eight decades has voluntarily answered each of these letters personally. They are citizens of Verona that have assumed the role of "Secretaries of Juliet", replying to the letters. This book enhances the fairytale like quality of everything considered romantic in Romeo and Juliet. Throughout the book there are images of all the sites in Verona, Italy that are dedicated to the romance of the famous couple. It goes from the famous balcony to the courtyard where there is a statue of young Juliet, and continues to her tomb. It also shows you Romeo’s home and a statue that was erected for him as well and, the courtyard where they were married. It is all beautifully wrapped up in the countryside of Italy. What a wonderful escape!

In the book there is a beautiful souvenir pin that was designed by Ettore Solimani Inscribed with the phrase Se ami credi in Giuletta (If you love, believe in Juliet) which I think says it all.

Have a love issue you'd like to share with Juliet? Send your letter to:

Club di Giulietta - The Juliet Club
via Galilei 3 - 37100 Verona, Italia
Tel: (+39) 045 533115
You can also e-mail your letter to info@julietclub.com

Mailbox Monday

J'adore New York by: Isabelle Lafleche
book courtesy: Harper Collins Publishing

The Botticelli Secret by: Marina Fiorato
book courtesy: St. Martins Publishing Group

The Jewel of St. Petersburg by: Kate Furnivall
book courtesy: Berkley Publishing Group

Maid to Match by: Deeanne Gist
book courtesy: Bethany House Publishing Group

O'Juliet by Robin Maxwell

***Purchased through Barnes and Noble

Synopsis

Maxwell delivers a mesmerizing retelling of the famous star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, in her latest novel, set in Italy at the beginning of the Renaissance. Juliet Capelletti is a headstrong, intelligent young lady who is facing an arranged marriage to Jacopo Strozzi, her father's new business partner. She does not look forward to her match but knows that it will make her parents happy. Juliet's entire future is forever changed one night at the engagement party of her best friend, Lucrezia, when she meets the handsome Romeo Monticecco. Romeo is at the party to seek reconciliation between his family and the Capelettis, who have been feuding and retaliating against each other for years.
Juliet and Romeo find a chance to talk together alone under the stars, and their destiny unfolds. Both are surprised by the other's passion for poetry and shared interest in Dante Alighieri's Vita Nuova. After their first meeting, Juliet is determined to find a way out of her upcoming marriage to Jacopo, even though this means defying her family's wishes for her and possibly destroying the business between her father and her betrothed.
What unfolds is a beautiful love story between the soul mates Romeo and Juliet. Maxwell realistically portrays the torment with which Juliet is faced as she wonders what her future holds. The things I enjoyed the most about the novel were how Maxwell drew parallels between Dante and his love, Beatrice, and Romeo and Juliet, and her use of poetry and quotes from Dante throughout the novel. Readers will savor this exquisite and magical love story."

My Review Comments:

I have to say that I loved this book, I couldn’t put it down because it was so beautifully written. It was wonderful to see Romeo and Juliet placed in a novel format. Romeo and Juliet weren’t just in lust for each other like most other books portray them, they were truly in love with each other. Both poets themselves, Romeo and Juliet were first drawn together by the works of Dante, a famous deceased poet. They met at Juliet’s best friend’s celebration. During this short meeting love ensued, but it was more than love at first sight. There was a solid foundation for their attraction, a mutual connection that made their story unfold truly beautifully. Juliet was vivacious and stubbornly strong-willed for a young woman of that era, while Romeo came across as a peacemaker of sorts, cheerful-natured, sweet and unruffled - at least until it came to defending and fiercely loving his fair Juliet. Both, of course, were dreamers of the best sorts. I loved the depth that it went into about the Capeletti's family silk merchant business and Monticecco’s family business of being farmers. The characters were very well developed and the storyline was different than the Romeo and Juliet we are all used to without straying too far from the fundamental nature of Shakespeare's beloved play. The differences between the Shakespeare version and this one were their ages, locations, and some of the other characters, but it still held true to the basic premise of two young lovers who married secretly, between two battling families and they ultimately have a tragic ending through death tying to achieve eternal love.

"Their love was the stuff of legend. But the legend is only half the story." – quote from the cover