A new novel by Maggie O'Farrell.
Our most recent book club choice has been on my list since it came out last year, and it is so deserving of all the praise and awards. My favorite book of the year so far, and this right after reading Shuggie Bain and Homegoing which I both really loved. The idea of British writer Maggie O‘Farrell is simple and genius at the same time: Hamnet is a vision of the life of playwright William Shakespeare, based on the little biographical information available.
O‘Farrell creates a magical world around the Shakespeare family with a young William in the centre of her tale, detailing both his youth as well as life as a father of three at a later stage, moving between two timelines with ease. The tension and dramatic irony compelling the reader are partly due to this masterful storytelling, and partly due to the biographical knowledge. The reader knows all too well how Shakespeare’s life will transform from an aimless young man in Stratford-Upon-Avon to a successful writer and theatre entrepreneur in London. Beyond that, it is well-known (and also already mentioned in the blurb of the novel, and therefore can’t be considered a spoiler) that his son Hamnet died at age 11, and then Shakespeare went on to write his play Hamlet several years later. O‘Farrell creates a stunning tale including these elements and so much more.
Hamnet is not necessarily a novel for historians and Shakespeare scholars, but rather for readers who enjoy imagining past worlds, and have an interest in Elizabethan England. Beyond that, I can recommend this novel to anyone who simply enjoys storytelling and family tales. It certainly gives an interesting insight into life both on the countryside as well as the urban London at the time, and adds a fascinating layer to all speculation about the mysterious Shakespeare, about whom so little is known.
(Images by me.)