Author: Maggie O’ Farrell
Publisher: Hachette Australia
Genre: Modern & Contemporary, General Fiction
Year of release: 2021
Release Date: 13th April 2021
Rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Synopsis
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.
Review
Summer 1596 Stratford- Upon-Avon, England; Judith Shakespeare takes to her bed becoming suddenly ill with a fever. Her twin brother can’t help but notice that his beloved sisters sudden and continuous decline, Hamnet must search high and low for help, the only trouble is there is no help to be found as nobody’s home. Where is everybody? What should he do to aid his twin sister in her hour of need?
Meanwhile Hamnet and Judith’s mother Agnes is currently tending to her garden over a mile away unaware that she is needed at home urgently, as for Will who is Hamnet and Judith’s father he is working in London, neither parent realises that their 11-year-old only son is not long left for this world.
How will this family come together when the foundations suddenly become cracked permanently?
Not having fond memories of reading Shakespeare in high school I put off looking into this book for quite some time. I was thrilled to discover I had nothing to worry about. It took me a little while to appreciate the slow pace of the writing the author used to reveal the story; however, thanks to being pulled right into Hamnet’s universe instantly made me want to persevere with the book.
I would discover in the later chapters that the picturesque writing used to bring Hamnet to life is why I gave this book it’s 5- star-rating; my first of the year and why Hamnet is a book I will now highly recommend, even if you’re not a fan of Shakespeare. Maggie O’ Farrells Hamnet ensures the reader that you don’t have to be a fan of the playwright, to be a fan of 2021’s Hamnet.
Having only the knowledge that William Shakespeare was a playwright I knew nothing of his family life or their struggles, so even though this is a reimaging of what happened to the child I can imagine given the time period and the lack of records kept during the time period this could be an accurate account. I believe the Author has done a marvellous job in crafting a back story based upon very little information.
There is so much story to unveil within these pages, self-discovery, love, coming of age, grief and loss are just some of the themes that feature heavily throughout this novel. If you’re anything like me, you enjoy character-based books with heavy descriptive writing with more than one main theme; then O’ Farrells Hamnet will be a high point when picking up this book; but if you’re not too keen on descriptive books then perhaps that is something to note before picking up a copy.
The main theme in Hamnet is motherhood, many books have mother’s but not many detail about what happens when a woman loses one of her own children after bringing them into the world. The author has touched upon this unimaginable pain and sorrow with a great deal of respect and care.
“Anyone, Eliza is thinking, who describes dying as ‘slipping away’ or ‘peaceful’ has never witnessed it happen. Death is violent, death is a struggle. The body clings to life, as ivy to a wall, and will not easily let go, will not surrender its grip without a fight.”
― Hamnet
Agnes makes for a fantastic heroine and a character that will stay with this reviewer for quite some time. Even though this book is named for her son so much of this novel is spent alongside Agnes in dual timelines before her childbearing days and after. I got a real sense of the love between Agnes and Will in those earlier days.
The ability to warm to Agnes as a character throughout her milestones in the book was greatly appreciated; if she was a one-dimensional character, it wouldn’t have worked so well, and the book would’ve fallen flat in this reviewers’ opinion.
“She is not yet where she needs to be, in the forest, alone, with the trees over her head. She is not alone.”
― Hamnet
I also appreciated the detail given to how the sickness came to the Shakespeare household, it’s not something I think people consider before getting sick; they just get sick, this section of the book was a great way I believe to build anticipation for what was to come next.
There are plenty of characters within this tale and whilst this is something I would ordinarily find bothersome, but I found myself eagerly spending time with most members of the family. I will admit that my enthusiasm for Shakespeare himself ran dry, finding him self-centred for most of the book; his father John was not much better and at times I wondered why he featured within the pages at all given he contributed so little.
Bartholomew makes for a delightful minor character so much so he doesn’t feel like one, I enjoyed the older sister younger brother trope used here, just as much as I enjoyed Hamnet and Judith.
Without spoiling anything there were a few questions I had upon finishing this book and I probably will always have them, but these remaining questions don’t take away from the overall enjoyment that is this book. I believe Hamnet could’ve benefited with a dated timeline within the book, rather than guessing. But this is a personal preference which doesn’t take anything away from the story.
I wasn’t completely sold on the ending at first but having had time to think it over I realise the book did have to end at some point and perhaps adding a little more to an already long story which might have made it feel never ending? The ending left me feeling somewhat saddened for what could have been for this family and Hamnet himself.
I highly recommend this book to mature readers if you’re a fan of General, Historical Fiction, retellings or the tale of Hamnet.