Prince of Cats

The graphic novel, Prince of Cats, is a postmodern remix of Shakespeare's classic, Romeo and Juliet. This thrilling, 80s themed comic takes place in the dark, shady streets of Brooklyn, New York.  This novel, from author Ronald Wimberly, is a shout out to hip-hop’s timeless culture. Wimberly took influences from his own growing up in New York which led him to construct Prince of Cats. With a  20th century twist, the graphic novel is written from the perspective of Romeo’s chief antagonist, Tybalt. Prince of Cats shows Tybalt and his gang bounding across rooftops and getting into tragic beefs. Throughout the story, the characters maintain the Shakespearean verbiage but in a ghetto type dialogue. This at times was quite comical to read when old english was mixed with slang. Similarly to Romeo and Juliet, Prince of Cats focuses on violence, forbidden love, and also a look into what drives a man to throw away his life when he could be enjoying his youth. Also like Romeo and Juliet, this comic is a wild ride, clever, and wonderfully made.  

Abigail Nilsson
Literature and Media Studies