Carmen

Starred review from February 21, 2011
Given how often Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet has been reinvented, it's surprising that Bizet's famous opera has received little attention in the YA sphere (The Fortune of Carmen Navarro being a recent exception). Myers updates the classic story of doomed love with flair (and humor), moving the action from 19th-century Spain to present-day Spanish Harlem. The cast stays pretty much intact—sensuous, willful Carmen seduces a cop, instead of a corporal, before rejecting him for the flashier Escamillo, here a rap star/film producer. Written in script format like Myers's Riot and Monster, the story is broken up into two acts. The contemporary details will help it resonate with teens—instead of a smuggling ring, Carmen and her girlfriends are drafted to help pull off a massive credit card fraud. Bizet's opera broke new ground because it treated the emotions of its working-class characters with respect; Myers does the same. Though students unfamiliar with the opera may need some filling in, this concentrated dose of high drama is full of sharp repartee and would make a lively classroom read-aloud. Ages 12–up.

May 1, 2011

Gr 8 Up-In this adaptation of Bizet's legendary opera, Myers transports Carmen from Seville to Spanish Harlem. A street-wise factory worker, she seduces Jose, a cop, and quickly leads him astray. Entranced by her beauty and unable to control his temper, he quickly makes a few rash moves that land him off the force and into a life on the fringe. Yet just as Jose loses himself to be with her, Carmen shifts her attention to Escamillo, a rap artist/entrepreneur recently returned to the neighborhood. Jose, unable to control his rage when Carmen flees to the arms of another, shoots her as she waits outside Escamillo's concert. Myers seamlessly pulls off the drama's transportation to a contemporary urban setting and, true to form, renders it accessible to today's teens. The dialogue quietly touches on deep social issues, especially in the back and forth among neighborhood characters and the police. Some of the more minor narrative threads prove a little weak in translation. For example, Micaela, the "good girl" Jose's mother hopes he'll marry, is somewhat underdeveloped. Unlike in the original, it is unclear how she is connected to his family, and why Jose is physically separated from his mother, which makes a few of their interactions feel somewhat random. This adaptation's authentic dialogue, fast pace, and readability, however, trump any minor imperfections. An excellent choice for reluctant readers, urban or otherwise.-Jill Heritage Maza, Greenwich High School, CT

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