Romeo and Juliet--Together (And Alive!) at Last [Paperback]

Avi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1988 | Age Level: 8 and up

Pete Saltz, the pudgy poet from S.O.R. Losers, has fallen hard for Anabell Stackpoole, and she likes him, too. But both are much too shy to do anything about it.

It's Pete's friend Ed Sitrow to the rescue, as he and other eighth-graders at South Orange River School cook up a scheme to give the budding romance a boost. The school production of Romeo and Juliet stars the bashful pair in the leading roles -- and everybody's waiting for the kissing scenes. What they get is more action than Shakespeare ever imagined, in the funniest, most disastrous...and most romantically successful production ever!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ed discovers that his best friend Saltz is nursing a secret love for Anabell Stackpoole and gets the rest of the other eighth graders to rewrite and produce their version of Romeo and Juliet. They wangle the leading roles for Saltz and Stackpoole, and let romance run its course. Avi's heart is in the right place; he devotes an entire book to the well-intentioned efforts of a group of good friends to bring a boy and girl together, but fans of his historical fiction may find this a light repast. The story strains credibility, but no matter; Avi proves that stories don't have to be believable to be fun. A Richard Jackson Book. Ages 11-13.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"A fast-moving, genuinely funny enjoyable read." -- --Kirkus

"An imginative, cleverly-written, laugh-out-loud story" -- --Booklist

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1 edition (September 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380705257
• ISBN-13: 978-0380705252
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #529,427 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Avi has published more than sixty books. Among them is Crispin: The Cross of Lead, winner of the 2003 Newbery Medal. Other novels with nineteenth-century settings, like The Traitors' Gate -- his grand nod to the work of Charles Dickens -- are listed before the title page, and include the Newbery Honor Book, The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. Avi and his family live in Denver, Colorado.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read this book about a life for a modern a 5-7th grader., June 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Romeo and Juliet--Together (And Alive!) at Last (Paperback)

I read the book, Romeo & Juliet Together at last (and alive) by Avi Wortis. It was about a boy who was in love with a girl . The boy liked poetry and the girl could never put a book down. The boy's friends think that if he could put on the play Romeo & Juliet his friend would be Romeo and his lover would be Juliet. It worked out as he planned and they got the parts .There is one problem; a bully named Hamilton wanted to be Romeo. They though they had convinced him to be a knight but it was a joke. During the book, Hamilton gets back to the cast of the play and ........ oops sorry you have to read the book to find out the ending. I give the book 4 stars out of 5- stars.

4.0 out of 5 stars Romance, silly middle-school style, April 29, 2006

By 

S. Silverman "ReaderGeode" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Romeo and Juliet--Together (And Alive!) at Last (Paperback)

Middle school age kids attempt to play matchmaker for a pair of bashful peers by developing their own production of Shakespeare's classic with those two shy folks in the lead roles. The characters are very age-appropriate in interaction and approach to the production's challenges. This makes for some funny results in terms of such things as costuming and timing and forgotten lines and/or actions and adolescent ego. This would be a good way for a youngster to get his or her first taste of The Bard, a source many youngsters see as intimidating. The kids' loyalties, friendships, and social observations and dislikes ring true. Having read several of Avi's other works before, this is just one more that shows him to be a consistently reliable choice of author for young people.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Two weeks to perform Romeo And Juliet? No problem!, December 12, 1999

By 

Brian Merrill - See all my reviews

This review is from: Romeo and Juliet--Together (And Alive!) at Last (Paperback)

This book follows some middle school kids in their attempt to perform the play "Romeo and Juliet", but the play is just an excuse to try to get two of their friends together (they have cast them as Romeo and Juliet). Unfortunately, they do not realize that they need much more than two weeks to get the play off the ground. But, that's all the time they have.

This book is wonderfully funny and imaginative. I recently read it to my sixth graders, and they really enjoyed it.