Ronit & Jamil
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
Pamela L. Laskin’s beautiful and lyrical novel in verse delivers a fresh and captivating retelling of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet that transports the star-crossed lovers to the modern-day Israel-Palestine conflict.
Ronit, an Israeli girl, lives on one side of the fence. Jamil, a Palestinian boy, lives on the other side. Only miles apart but separated by generations of conflict—much more than just the concrete blockade between them. Their fathers, however, work in a distrusting but mutually beneficial business arrangement, a relationship that brings Ronit and Jamil together. And lightning strikes. The kind of lightning that transcends barrier fences, war, and hatred.
The teenage lovers fall desperately into the throes of forbidden love, one that would create an irreparable rift between their families if it were discovered. But a love this big can only be kept secret for so long. Ronit and Jamil must face the fateful choice to save their lives or their loves, as it may not be possible to save both.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Laskin (Homer the Little Stray Cat) creates a resonant contemporary version of Romeo and Juliet, transporting Shakespeare's star-crossed lovers to modern-day Gaza. Ronit, a Jewish Israeli teen, meets Jamil, a Muslim Palestinian, through their fathers, a pharmacist and doctor. Though both families work together to help the needy in Palestine, they don't fully trust the other and are particularly wary of their teenage children talking to each other, much less falling in love. Writing in clipped, understated verse, Laskin borrows lines from the original play as she sensitively describes two lovers weaving their way through social, political, and familial hurdles designed to keep them apart ("I hate the parting/ the sorrow of it/ the fear/ tomorrow will never come"). Laskin takes pains to address the similarities between the Palestinian and Israeli households two back-to-back poems titled "Dinner Chatter" reveal parallel menus ("Ommi's good food:/ hummus, falafel, baba ghanoush.... Imah's good food:/ hummus, falafel, baba ghanoush") and attitudes starkly juxtaposing them against mutual prejudices. A lyrical message of peace and love radiates from this relevant and hopeful reimagining. Ages 13 up.
