Letters to Juliet: Celebrating Shakespeare's Greatest Heroine, the Magical City of Verona, and the Power of Love

by Lise Friedman, Ceil Friedman

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.

Genres: Nonfiction, Romance, History, Italy, Shakespeare, Travel, Chick Lit

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Letters to Juliet is my first read by Lise Friedman. I recently watched the movie and loved it. It's a breathtaking story for love and loss.
The movie has a different twist than the book. The book explores more of the world of Juilet's letters and how they came to be. The ladies of Verona have assumed the role of Secretaries of Juliet' for eight decades and has voluntarily answered each of these letters personally.

Letters To Juliet is a wonderful and imaginative take on Shakespeare's love story, Romeo and Juliet. If you are a fan of the famous Romeo and Juliet, then this is another for the shelves.
Although the love story between Sophia and Charlie(movie) is a fiction story, I found it very interesting that people do in fact, write letters to -Juliet - with the hope that "she" will bring them answers. All of the letters, since the 1930s. have received an answer. They've received 5000 letters annually, but due to the recent movie release, the letters received have grown in amount.

Letter's To Juliet also contains the history behind Shakespeare's tale, and beautifully describes the magic City of Verona. I only wish I could visit there one day and write a letter to Juilet myself. Letter's to Juliet is a one of a kind poetic story, fit for all. I loved both the novel and the movie, and highly recommend both!

[Katie Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

The romance of the story made Letters to Juliet one of my favourite films of all time but the part that always interested me the most was the story of the secretaries of Juliet who answer all the letters addressed to Shakespeare's most iconic heroine. This book tells the story of those secretaries, from the very first man who took it upon himself to revive the wonder and magic surrounding the story of Romeo & Juliet to the women who still run the Club di Giulietta today. I find it bizarre but amazingly inspiring that not one letter goes unanswered, no matter how many are sent or what language they come in, each and every one gets a response. The book is littered with excerpts from these letters to Juliet & her secretaries - some were cute, some heart-wrenching and others hilarious.

I loved all of the information on the myths & legends surrounding Romeo & Juliet, and the myriad of stories that inspired Shakespeare's most famous play. I also enjoyed the descriptions of the history of Verona and the 21st Century view of the city (that wasn't limited to sites important to Juliet). Most of all, I enjoyed how wonderfully detailed this book was for its small size - even the sleeping potion that Juliet used was analysed for its validity and historical importance.

Overall this was such a lovely read and made me even more determined to go to Italy (and now Verona is right at the top of my list!).

[K.D. Absolutely · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fine. I have to admit that the cover picture of Mama Mia's daughter, the beautiful Amanda Seyfried was the one who caught my eyes while walking around the bookstore. All my friends - girls, gays -and their men, who saw that ABBA movie liked Amanda especially in the opening wharf scene with her singing "I have a dream/a song to sing/to help me cope with anything" in dark starry night with moon and starlights reflecting and bouncing on the small waves.

Reading the blurb, saying that this book has something to do with Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, made me want to buy it. Also, the book looks cool: glossy with all those colorful pictures of the country I almost had the chance to visit twice, Italy. Twice I was invited. Twice I missed it because of not enough time to process my visa. I even attended Basic Italian class in 2006. Now I have to content myself looking at the pictures of Italy. Oh maybe someday, who knows?

Anyway, the book's cover says "The story of the letter-writing phenomenon that inspired the idea behind the motion picture Letter to Juliet". So this book was neither novelized from movie nor the movie was made from this book. This is actually a non-fiction book telling the actual story behind all those people who over decades have been responding to letters coming from everywhere around the globe. Letters, mostly love-related, addressed to the Shakespeare heroine, Juliet.

First was just businessman Solimani who took fancy in responding to letters left in Juliet's tomb in Verona. He was the custodian of Juliet's (make-believe) tomb. When he became overaged, a retired professor, Beltramini took over. When he died, female secretaries were hired. As of this writing, there are 6 of them and they sign their responses, Juliet or Giulietta (if they write in Juliet's native language).

If you love Romeo and Juliet, read this book. It has the story behind that famous Shakespeare play. It tells about the play's predecessors. Showing that the idea of ill-fated lovers was not actually Shakespeare's original concept. You will also like the sample letters. Most of them are cheesy but sweet, like this:

"I asked myself many times, how it is that we fall in love: do we trip, lose our balance and fall, scraping our hearts? Do we crash to the ground, on stones? Or it is like staying on the edge of a precipice for all time? (from) Poland"

This book also shows the now tourist-destination places in Verona because of this play: not only Juliet and Romeo's tombs but also their homes, places where famous scenes happened in the play, it even has the recipe for Juliet's cookies (how I wish I know how to bake) and even Juliet's statue whose breasts visiting tourist fondle supposedly for good luck.

*Sigh* Oh maybe someday. Who knows?

[Eslam Abdelghany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I REALLY LOVED THE BOOK,AND NO QUESTION IMPRESSED BY THE MOVIE<<<
DEAR SOPHIE,DEAR CLAIRE,AND OF COURSE DEAR JULIET,I DON'T KNOW HOW TO THANK YOU...
AGAIN ANS AGAIN,I KEEP REPEATING"WHENEVER YOU FELT TRUE LOVE,IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO GET IT...
TILL WE MEET AGAIN<<<:)))

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5
Sweet and enjoyable, this history of Juliet's legacy in Verona was fun to read. It covered the history of Juliet's tomb and the secretaries who answer her letters. It was nicely illustrated but the pictures didn't have captions so I had trouble keeping track of what I was looking at.

[Rach · Rating 4 out of 5]

I requested this book from the local library after seeing the movie "Letters to Juliet" with my mom, and was not disappointed. Rather than being a novel similar to the movie, this book is more about the history that we know of the "real" Juliet and Romeo, and the history of the character's relationships to the city of Verona. Included in that is the history of the Secretaries of Juliet, the Club of Juliet, and the phenomenon of letters written to Juliet. I enjoyed reading a sampling of actual letters written to Juliet, and this definitely inspires me to travel to Verona. Of course, I wish we could know more facts about who the real Juliet really was, and if she truly existed, but it's reached the point in history where we most likely will never know any more. The world will have to be satisfied with the fantasy of Juliet and the everlasting love that she represents.

[Tabatha · Rating 3 out of 5]

when i heard the movie was coming out the first thing i wanted to do was watch it, but the first thing i did was read this book. I really liked it to a point. Its about a girl that goes to verona with her fiance and while there finds a lost letter to juliet. she writes back to the women and helps her on her journey to find her romeo. but in the process she falls in love with her grandson. i liked this book because it says that it is never to late for love, that even in your oldest age love is still out there some where. but we all know that love does not always wait. this movir but that realization to the back of your mind because of the love and the fact that even in her worse dream she knew there was a possiblity that he would not be there for her but she searched anyway.

[Duane Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was drawn to this book by the movie. This is nonfiction but I was looking for a novel. This was a brief history of the "origins" of Romeo and Juliet, mostly Juliet, and the myth and reality behind the story and the couple. It also reads like a travel guide for the city of Verona. I don't mean to be critical because it was interesting; I like history and I love the story of Romeo and Juliet. The illustrations and photos also added greatly to the experience.

"She is, after all, a universal symbol of eternal love, and her grip on the imagination is absolute."

[Angela Holland · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book for the most part. The idea that so many people around the world write letters to Juliet is something I would not have thought about. Some people write asking for help and some write to tell her how much they admire her. It was interesting to hear how there is a group of people that answer all the letters that people write. I liked seeing the pictures of Verona, Italy. The stories of where the idea of Romeo and Juliet came from before Shakespeare wrote his play was also kind of interesting. Parts of that part of the book was a little dry in spots for me but in the same light I did not realize that Romeo and Juliet was possibly based on real people and/or other stories that were written long ago. For me this read fast as I was able to read it in one day and I am glad I took the time to read it.

[CynthyB · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a lovely little journey that inspired the movie, "Letters to Juliet." I enjoyed reading about the historical basis of the story of Romeo and Juliet, seeing pictures of the places where the original Capulets (Cappelletti) and Montagues (Montecchi) families lived in Verona, Italy, and discovering the evolution of the story as it was passed down from one author to the next, culminating in Shakespeare's tale. I also enjoyed reading the history of the letters written (past and present) to Juliet and those volunteer "secretaries" who have responded to them for over seven decades. A quick, poetic and interesting read.

[Jenny Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oddly, the best part of the book was not written by the authors. I loved reading the letters.

[Jeane · Rating 4 out of 5]

My feelings towards the book Leters to Juliet were influenced by having the front cover picture of the actress and having recently seen the movie. So I started reading it thinking it would be a light, fast and probably commercial kind of 'story'.

From the first pages I have been dragged instead into the words. Trying not to become part of the words through my well-known feeling when reading something very well written about Italy, I tried to stay objective. But around page 34 I admited I was lost and well into it.
Letters to Julliet gives historical facts about the story, Verona and more importantly it captures so well that amazing feeling that I have only found in things linked to Italy.
If I would be better in cooking delicate things like Baci di Giulietta, I can promise you I would be preparing them right now. The whole recipe is in the book, so I hope someone will make them and let me know how they are! :-)
This book brings me back to my visit to Verona, from where my dear friend is. She showed me around her city and it made me feel the wonderful Italian beauty. Reading this book, I am back at casa di Giulietta, walking a bit further in the narow street towards casa di Romeo which has kept all the secrecy in the marvelous building like the legend around his name has kept and passes on to each new generation.
This book is mainly about the tons of letters which are send yearly to the secretaries in verona, tells about the universal thing in everybody's lide 'love', Shakespeare's part in all this and the ones before him and so much more.

I went through the book in one day and lvoed it. What I thought would be a commercial, only facts about the movie and legend, empty telling was such a good and informative book. It felt lively even if it was about the past and at the same time present and future as love will be always around every second of everybody's life in whatver way.

I know it is a bit empty and commercial, but I watched Juliet+Romeo, the modern version, just before finishing the book.... to hear the words.

[Suzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute book, mostly for the curiously true theme: People writing letters to Juliet of Romeo and and other people answering them! The book had to be stretched out to some boring and repetitive extents to make a book, but I liked learning about Verona and the literary history of the Romeo and Juliet story (of which I was embarrassingly ignorant). Most of all, it was intriguing to read the smattering of letters from all over the world from men, women, boys and girls praising or seeking advice or intervention from Juliet, who, to them, was something like a saint. Like grown up letters to Santa Claus! I would have liked the book to have centered more around the current group of women who answer the letters, telling their story and stories, but it didn't much.
I wouldn't recommend this book to you unless you are very literary, love Shakespeare or R & J, or are of a fantastical mindset, but, if you find it lying around somewhere, it's a pleasant little read. I understand that a movie has also been made about the Letters to Juliet phenomenon. I'm guessing it might be more story, less documentary, which I would like more. After reading the book, I'd be interested to watch it.

[Samantha Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good read I really enjoyed it

[Karen Floyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

From the reviews I've read it seems most people think this book was an offshoot of the movie, and are disappointed that it doesn't have the movie's story. My understanding is that the idea for the movie came from reading this book. Either way, there's really no basis for comparison. The book attempts to piece together the story of the "real" Juliet and the city of Verona, and then tells of the phenomenon of the many thousands of letters written to the spirit of Shakespeare's Juliet asking for romantic advice. For almost a century romantic and thoughtful replies have been sent back by "Juliet's secretaries." I found it heart-warming that in this self-centered and sometimes cold world we live in there are people who are not only willing, but anxious to do this service for people they don't know, but who are in need of comfort.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is not what I thought it would be. I clearly did not read the description right. I was excited when I purchased this because I loved the movie so much. But, alas it is not a novel, like I thought it was. Just skimming through the letters. I can't get through the history part, too boring for me.

Towards the middle, and end, the book did get a little more interesting as the authors started to talk about the creation of the Club di Guieletta; as well as the history of such.

Reading the letters were quite funny, too. Some were asking for dating advice; from getting an e-mail address to locating eligible men.

If you are truly a die hard Romeo and Juliet fan, it may be a good read if you skim to the more interesting chapters. But, since I'm not and thought it was going to be something different I can't give it a high rating.

[Natcha Jarupanitkul · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story revolves around this girl, Sophie. Se and her fiance went on a holiday trip together to Verona, Italy. She met this group of ladies who claim them selves to be 'Juliet'. They reply letters from desperate women from all over the world that come and put their love problem letters on the wall. Sophie eventually decided to help and reply this one letter that was written years ago which she found under the the stones in the wall. Surprisingly,the old lady that wrote letter and her nephew come and meet her. They went on a long journey together to find her one 'true love'.

[El Gibran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amanda : "so you come to find your Lorenzo?"
Vanessa : "yes i think i know where he is"
Amanda : "where?"
Vanessa : "at a farm, near sienna"
...........
Amanda : "may i come with you to find Lorenzo?"
Charlie : "come with us? what about the fiance of yours? you are on the city of love and you want to come with us?"
.......
Charlie : "forgive me where's my manners?"
Amanda : "you know i've been wondering about that since the first time i met you"
Charlie : "yes politely, i don't know why, you seem to bring up the very worst of me" (The best part LOL)

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished this exquisite read.
I have been back in Verona retracing my steps via this book. I closed my eyes and had wonderful memories appearing before me.
I have always loved the story of Romeo and Juliet - a powerful love that cannot be forget.
The letters , the history , the hope that appear on the pages of the book were wonderful to read and surprisingly didn't feel intrusive.
I love that this inspired the film Letters to Juliet and I know I'll be watching it tonight .

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are into history, and you loved the tale of Romeo and Juliet, I would recommend giving this book a read.

[Lisa Mcbroom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Historical fact about the "Juliet " secretaries in Verona. This is very different from the movie so if you want something exactly based on the movie you won't like it.

[Bent Abeeha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed it

[Nathan Albright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like many people, I have participated in various reenactments of the famous balcony scene--once in the ninth grade when our English class read Romeo & Juliet and a second time as a college student when some friends and I trespassed on a defunct religious college in Pasadena, California for a birthday celebration and reenacted the scene at a building called Mayfair.  The appeal, therefore, of love letters and of Romeo & Juliet and the city of Verona is something I can definitely appreciate [1].  That does not mean, necessarily, that I would write letters and send them to Italy to be answered by the people discussed in this book, as many people apparently do, but rather than the appeal of Juliet, and to a lesser extent Romeo, is something I definitely understand.  And let us make no doubt, this book is appealing.  It seems designed to sell something--a few things rather--but the book as a whole is an appealing one in that it grounds the story of Romeo and Juliet in a sense of reality both temporally and geographically, and provides it a literary context.

In terms of its contents, this book is an easy one to read.  After a short introduction, the book provides a look at the tale of Romeo & Juliet through history, starting from Greek myth and winding its way through Italian literature eventually to English literature where the story is immortalized by Shakespeare.  The author notes that Shakespeare makes Juliet younger than any of the other writers do--only thirteen, which prompts some obvious questions of why such a young lady should be the subject of such a romance.  The author then discusses the way that Juliet's tomb was modified throughout history to make it more appealing and romantic for tourism from the 19th century to today, as well as the start of the phenomenon of sending letters to Juliet in the hope of some sort of romantic assistance.  Indeed, the book throughout is peppered with examples of these letters, and many of them are rather unfortunate cases.  The author discusses the reputed site of Juliet's house, and Romeo's, and what this has meant for tourism to Verona, and spends a couple of chapters looking at some of the famous people who have answered Juliet's mail and encouraged holding her in fond esteem throughout the past few decades, like the Club di Giulietta that remains popular in the city.

This book has a lot to offer, despite the fact that it seems a love letter to the story as well as the city of Verona more than a sober sort of book.  This is a book about the endless and massive appeal of love, which is all the more suitable for a book whose existence is likely an attempt to set the context for the novel and movie of the same title.  It fulfills that purpose, definitely.  The book also is full of quirks--it shows the divided nature of Italy during the Middle Ages and Renaissance rather well, connects the romance of Romeo & Juliet to the same history of conflict between Guelf and Ghibelline that ensnared such people as Dante, and also manages to point out to the reader the existence of Veronese as a separate language than Italian, something many people may not be aware of.  As a novel, it is a reminder of the danger and division of Italy that continues to this day, making the hopes of Romeo & Juliet to bring their feuding families together rather more poignant than the mere lovesick wishes of possibly fictive teenagers.

[1] See, for example:

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...

[Leila Mota · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's my second reading, and it keeps getting better. The first time I had only known Juliet from literary references or from the movie with the same title. Now I've visited Juliet's house and city, and it's so much more interesting comparing information and reality!
From the book we can learn that Juliet's myth is older than Shakespeare. Maybe it's because of the great writer that a tragic history resonates down the centuries, but it's so, and other artists keep the myth alive, as well as people who sees the tragic heroine as a symbol for eternal love.
The city of Verona just did its part to keep the myth alive. It was not always like that, but it is now, and getting to learn the details of how it happened, and to know about the dedicated people who answer the letters that keep pouring from all over the world, that's a real treaty. I admire the authors for a research well done and for bringing it to readers in an attractive and catching way.

[Theresa F. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had some issues with the formatting of this book. The chronological narrative thread was frequently interrupted by various tangents, so that when the main narrative resumed I felt disoriented and had difficulty remembering who certain key figures in the timeline of events were. In one instance, a page ended mid-sentence, and the following page began a tangent discussing the subject of Juliet's birthday. The sentence that had been cut off didn't begin again until 3 pages later.
Despite these frustrations, I found myself genuinely fascinated by the information shared in this book. During the unbroken stretches in the text, I easily devoured page after page in one sitting of historical background and personal recollections compiled by the authors. I believe I would have rated the book higher if the layout had been better structured to be more intuitive and reader friendly.
Did I like it? Yes.
Would I reread it? Probably not.
Would I recommend it? Yes.

[Jeanette Michalets · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't expect much from this book and I received even less than I expected. Since this was an inexpensive title from a library book sale and I was currently reading a critique on Shakespeare, I thought, "Why not give it a chance?"

The book has very little substance and is disjointed. The early pages were confusing as it was difficult to keep the various tales of "Romeo and Juliet" or Romeo and Guilietta straight. The book is an account of various Italian men and women who keep the enduring romantic tragedy alive by answering letters that are sent to "Juliet, Verona, Italy." Some of these letters are reproduced in the book along with snippets of information about the star-crossed lovers and the monuments and museums dedicated to them in Verona, all of which seem seedy and like tourist traps.

Adolescents must have given this slender book its 4-star rating.

[Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

In ode to the quickly approaching Valentine’s Day, this book provided a quick, delightful diversion, exploring how Verona has embraced the romantic legend of Romeo & Juliet. It highlights in particular the numerous letters penned to Juliet (and answered!) over the centuries.

An example directly from the book - “My name is Ricardo. I am ten years old and live in a town in a province of Mantua. Last summer I met a pretty fourteen-year-old girl who lives in Verona, named Federica. I would like very much to see her again. Can you give me any news of her - Italy.”

Oh, a movie Letters to Juliet was inspired by the book, but I haven’t seen it nor am I inspired to search for it.

[Amy Tolle · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Romeo and Juliet" may be a Shakespearean tragedy, but this book about devotees to the Juliet legend is pure joy. To think that centuries after Shakespeare penned this play, people from all over the world still write letters by the thousands to Juliet's "secretaries," is both amazing and uplifting. The accompanying photographs are as exquisite as the words in this remarkable volume. I own this book and it will have a home on my bookshelf for as long as I am on this earth. Whenever I need a lift, I will leaf through this book! ❤️

[Karina Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am someone who does not read, but I read this book in one day! I heard about the movie through someone, but I didn’t want to watch the movie until I had read this book. I had no idea something like this had existed. I really had no interest in Romeo and Juliet while I was reading it in school. But to grow up many years later to read this book, it really opened my eyes. I realized how Romeo and Juliet impacted many people throughout the whole world! It was really so interesting to learn. It makes me want to add to my bucket list to visit Italy someday.

[Michaila · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a huge fan of Romeo and Juliet, but when I heard about people from every country sending letters about their romances to "Juliet, Verona" and getting a reply, I had to read more.

This book is about the history of the myth, the play, the tomb, and the letters and their secretaries. It has several pages of letters (some heartbreaking) but I want so much more! They have thousands of letters kept in storage, yet only so many were added as excerpts to the book. I want more.