Hamnet

Author(s): Maggie O'Farrell

Fiction | Claire's Book Talkers

On a summer's day in 1596, a young girl in Stratford-upon-Avon takes to her bed with a sudden fever. Her twin brother, Hamnet, searches everywhere for help. Why is nobody at home? Their mother, Agnes, is over a mile away, in the garden where she grows medicinal herbs. Their father is working in London. Neither parent knows that Hamnet will not survive the week. Hamnet is a novel inspired by the son of a famous playwright: a boy whose life has been all but forgotten, but whose name was given to one of the most celebrated plays ever written.


CONSTANT READER STAFF REVIEW - CLAIRE


I am yet to emerge emotionally unscathed from a Maggie O’Farrell book. Having turned the final pages of Hamnet with my heart in my mouth, I took a breath before sitting for several minutes in that feeling of tumultuous numbness which arises only after finishing a truly affecting story. Maggie consistently captures such depth of character, and despite taking a somewhat different trajectory to previous novels, this is quite possibly the finest she has ever written. So much more than a simple resurrection of one of the greatest literary figures in history, she infuses Shakespeare’s family life with glorious colour and urges you to imagine the influence of his wife and children upon his work. In portraying themes of grief and parenthood, Maggie’s own experiences lend such weight and unvarnished authenticity to her words. Although heartbreaking, reading this masterpiece was an absolute joy – comforting and familiar, like wrapping yourself in the warmth of a favourite blanket while rain pours down outside.


Product Information

Winner - Women's Prize for Fiction 2020

General Fields

  • : 9781472223821
  • : Headline
  • : Tinder Press
  • : 0.3
  • : February 2021
  • : {"length"=>["19.8"], "width"=>["12.9"], "units"=>["Centimeters"]}
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Maggie O'Farrell
  • : Paperback
  • : English
  • : 823.92