What do you get when you take the dashing and debonair son of Alexander Hamilton and introduce him to the smart, socialite daughter of Sen. Aaron Burr? Well, what you get is "Love, Theodosia," a newly released novel that's being referred to as an updated version of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." Boston author Lori Goldstein wrote the book and joins GBH radio’s Henry Santoro and Henry in the Hub to discuss it. The following interview is slightly edited for clarity.
Henry Santoro: The book is set in the time of the turbulent 1800 election that spurred one of the greatest duels of all time. We can credit Boston-area author Lori Goldstein with creating this new tale of two young lovers. Where did the inspiration for this book come from?
Lori Goldstein: It came from the "Hamilton" musical. The name "Theodosia" might be familiar to some listeners because there was a song in the "Hamilton" musical called "Dear Theodosia." And I had seen the show on Broadway, pre-pandemic. I'm not someone who likes spoilers, so even when I watch a movie, I don't want to see a trailer beforehand. I went into watching the "Hamilton" musical without having heard the soundtrack. This was all very brand new to me while I was sitting in the audience. And during that show, there's this song, "Dear Theodosia," which is a more introspective, quieter moment of the show when our founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr are singing of their newborn children — one is a boy, the other is a girl — and they're singing about the fathers they want to be and the world they want to pass on to them. And I was sitting there listening and then immediately this Romeo and Juliet story popped in my mind. I began to think about what would happen if a romance developed between these children of political and personal enemies.
Henry Santoro: Is there a method to how you do your research?
Lori Goldstein: I have a journalism background and I have a very type-A personality, so those things help me kind of focus. But I kind of started with that initial research to get a sense of what was going on during this time. And those kinds of real life things help to influence the plot. Then I went back and I kind of plotted the story from the storytelling perspective. And then that allowed me to say, now I need to research what this part of New York City looked like, and now I need to research this kind of food in this time of year, because I was able to direct what was going to happen in the story and then find the pieces that fit that story.
Henry Santoro: So, let me ask you this are you a Hamilton?
Lori Goldstein: I am a reformed — I am a former Burr, who is now a Hamilton.
Henry Santoro: All right. I'm listening.
Lori Goldstein: I would say that when I was younger, I was a shy kid and I got good grades in school and I wanted to please my parents and teachers. But I was definitely a sit-back kind of person, and I didn't want the spotlight at all. So, it was definitely in that Burr, wait-for-it mindset.
And I think as I got older, and frankly, as I transitioned into writing and writing fiction, I kind of became more of a Hamilton out of necessity. Writing demands that you do that fight for your shot from the moment you decide you're going to pursue publication. I always say that as a writer pursuing publication that you have to be arrogant enough to think that out of the thousands of great manuscripts out there being written, you’re going to find an agent and you're going to find a publisher and you're going to find an audience. It requires arrogance and ambition, and I think that is something that very much in the Hamilton vein and kind of writing dragged me toward that.
Henry Santoro: Lori Goldstein is the author of the new book, Love Theodosia.
GBH News intern Sophie Soloway assisted with production of this interview.
