Do you love musicals as much as you love books? This might just be the right article for you. Today we bring you some book recommendations based on some popular musicals!
Hadestown > Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe
WebToon
Hadestown is a critically acclaimed musical that has been around for quite a while, but that gained more popularity over the past year thanks to its latest Broadway production. It’s about the Hades/Persephone and Orpheus/Eurydice myths. but with a modern twist. And if you like Hadestown, you probably like Greek mythology and forbidden love stories. That’s why there’s a high chance that you’ll like Lore Olympus, a web comic created by Rachel Smythe that is also based on the Hades/Persephone myth and that also has a modern approach. In this web comic, you get to discover how Persephone became Queen of the Underworld through beautiful illustrations mostly in blue and pink tones. The story currently has a hundred episodes and is updated every Sunday on WebToon, but it’s so easy to read and so addictive that it won’t take you long to catch up.
Anastasia > Romanov by Nadine Brandes
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
Anastasia is a rather new musical adapted from the 1997 film of the same name. The story about the Russian royal family’s incarceration and the horrifying ending to that imprisonment is known worldwide. However, in Romanov, Nadine Brandes gives us a new emotionally packed story with lots of magic elements and a strong family presence. We follow the Romanov family as they live under house arrest. However, at one point, the family is separated and Nastya (Anastasia) is given the task to hide the family’s relic because it contains spells that would be their only salvation. The first half of the book is more focused on the characters whilst the second part is more driven by action and features more of the fantasy aspects of the story. Overall, it is a touching novel that does a great job in mixing both light and darkness, and that focuses primarily on the theme of forgiveness, and whether it is worth giving.
Heathers > A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
A rock musical based on the 1988 film of the same name and it has been on both Broadway and the West End. It follows the story of four teenage girls whose lives are turned upside down when there is an intent on murdering the popular students and trying to pass their deaths as suicides. The show is known for its dark humour but also for talking about heavy topics like suicide, bullying, sexual assault, and violence in schools.
For this one, we have picked A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson, which is a book that, although not exactly as Heathers, also deals with most of the same topics, primarily teen murder and suicide. This is a YA thriller novel about a girl who went missing and was presumed dead by a boy who afterwards committed suicide and sent a text message confessing to what he had done. The body was never found and therefore, the case was closed. Until now, because a student is determined to open up the investigation again to write a school project about it. Overall, it is an enjoyable, fast-paced, and intriguing book.
Dear Evan Hansen > Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
Dear Evan Hansen is a musical written by Benji Pasek and Justin Paul and follows a teenage boy with social anxiety who just wants to find his place in this world and someone to understand him. Evan finds himself at the centre of a tragedy as a classmate commits suicide. In an attempt to become closer to his peers and to the deceased boy’s family, he pretends that he was good friends with the boy. He writes an email as proof that they were friends and after other events, his social life starts to grow. As he finds himself drawn deeper and deeper into the lie, he has to decide whether he should admit the truth and face the consequences or perpetuate the fantasy he has created. In conclusion, Dear Evan Hansen is a musical that deals with bullying, anxiety, depression, and suicide in a way that feels very real and raw.
For this musical, we recommend Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia. It is about an anxious girl who secretly writes a famous web comic, but one day, her life takes a turn when that secret is threatened, and she needs to figure out how she’ll handle everything that’s happening to her. Both Eliza and Evan have great imagination and a big inner world but struggle when it comes to expressing themselves with words, in person. The decisions they make are made out of fear but ultimately they learn that they can trust other people and count on them to be there for them when it matters. Both the musical and the book offer a very realistic portrayal of social anxiety.
Les Misérables > The Court of Miracles by Kester Grant
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
Of course, a list like this wouldn’t be complete without one of the most popular musicals of all time, Les Misérables. This French Revolution musical based on the novel by Victor Hugo has been going on for decades and has multiple productions on Broadway and the West End and film adaptations on its back. The book we recommend for this one is a new release, The Court of Miracles by Kester Grant. The author mirrors the world era in which Les Mis is set but reimagines it in a completely new and breath-taking way, one could say it’s a Les Mis meets Six of Crows book. In this novel, we follow the story of a young thief, Eponine (Nina) Thénardier who fights the leaders of Paris’ criminal underground at the beginning of the French Revolution. But it’s not the Paris we know, it’s an alternate version of the French capital which is divided between royalty and nine underworld criminal guilds: the Court of Miracles. The main character, Nina, has to protect her younger adopted sister Cosette (Ettie) from Tiger, the ruthless lord of the Guild of Flesh. In an attempt to do so, Nina is forced to make a difficult choice: protect her sister and set off a war between the guilds or lose her sister to Tiger.
In this book, most of the main characters and their personalities are pulled from the original story and its musical adaptations but everything is different enough that it makes for an interesting and fresh read that will definitely capture people’s attention. It is a complex story full of tragedy and dark undertones. Ultimately, it’s got real people, people who have nothing but that still find something to fight for and live for —it sends a message of hope.
OOOO I absolutely LOVE this! Thank you for the list!