Teach the Torches to Burn: A Romeo & Juliet Remix

thank you to macmillan children’s publishing group, feiwel & friends, and netgalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

with each iteration of these remixed classic, my inner queer teen soul heals a bit more.

queer stories, let alone queer classics, were not really what they are today. it was sparing to see them published and awarded so highly as we can see nowadays. nothing beyond the subtext. my high school experience really truly isn’t all that long ago if you think about it. my freshman year was only 10 years ago. so seeing classics, such as romeo and juliet, ones i was forced to read in my english literature classes, be re-interpreted so openly and canonically queer. i have no other words than saying that it warms my soul.

and unlike many of the classics that were thrust upon us, i actually truly enjoyed the original r&j story. it’s easily one of my favorite types of retellings to pick up, and especially when they’re queer. like this one so fantastically was. of course, we have romeo and valentine (mercutio’s newly added brother to the tale). but additionally, we have juliet who i coded as so obviously aroace, and friar laurence, who also falls on the ace spectrum in some fashion. now, i was not expecting that to be so. and i was delightfully surprised to see our titular girl have this role. and the way she explains her identity, somewhat like a flame that is just unlit in her. wow. i genuinely feel like that was one of the best ways i think i’ve ever seen it explained in literature. of course, it was flourished and flowery, but this is a shakespeare retelling after all. the core of her explanation to romeo. incredible. and i cannot and do not to it justice in my paraphrasing.

not only do i hold it dear to my heart that roehrig made juliet aroace, is that like with every good r&j retelling, she received her agency back. unlike in the original story, we see juliet’s wit, her ability to think on her feet and make the most of a bad situation. she’s the one who took charge in the plan for during final act for romeo. she’s the one who was able to get their enemies to back down once and for all. she is an icon. and i strive to have a 10th of her intelligence.

and god, of course we have to talk about romeo and valentine. they were so damn gentle with one another. despite all the chaos and ruin happening around them, they still found away to love each other with a bright fire. their ability to be soft with one another, despite all their worries and all the problems facing them. they have a love like no other. and as a wise man says in the story. this is a happiness they deserve. a happiness they would not have received in their original classic. and that’s what makes me absolutely adore this retelling series. it gives our characters, queer characters, the happy ending they deserve. it shows a queer reader that this is something they can have. something they deserve to have.