I have a lot of feelings, but if I don’t review this book now I never will.

Confession: I hadn’t seen or listened to the entirety of Hamilton before picking up this book, though I was in high school when Lin-Manuel Miranda’s masterpiece came out so it was already popular and I knew of it; I recognized some historical moments (shoutout to my awesome APUSH teacher) but this musical really makes the historical figures and facts come to life.

I’ve been a theater geek and a band member, so I’m well acquainted with both the performance and camaraderie aspects involved in a large production, and it delighted me to read about it in this book. I love behind-the-scenes stories, the journey from inspiration to curtain call. I love music and geeky references and clever wordplay. So the only question is, why didn’t I get into Hamilton sooner?

(I finished this in two sittings, and of course I listened to the soundtrack as I read LMM’s annotations; it took so long to get through because I was saving it as a reward for after my orgo exam. In case you couldn’t tell from my review, it was everything I hoped and more.)