Hamnet: A Book On The Inspiration Behind One of Shakespeare's Greatest Plays

Hamnet: A Book On The Inspiration Behind One of Shakespeare's Greatest Plays
William Shakespeare
    Maggie O' Farrell's novel Hamnet is an amazing book. If you like reading about the black plague, Shakespeare, or the 1500s, then this book is for you. O' Farrell's style of writing is so incredibly detailed and it really accentuates the story. The book is about William Shakespeare's son Hamnet, his wife and family, and how Hamnet's death inspired Shakespeare's play Hamlet. After Hamnet dies, the story really captures how it can feel when someone you love dies. The utter sorrow, the heartbreak of realizing that you're never going to see that person again, everything you could feel is written down in the pages following Hamnet's death. 

    At first, the story starts with Shakespeare's family before he meets his wife Anne, although the story refers to her as her nickname, Agnes. He is shown to be in conflict with his abusive father, and teaches Latin to young boys. Then he meets Agnes, a mysterious girl who is an outcast in her town. They marry, have three children, two of them being twins, and begin to settle down. Shakespeare ends up leaving for London, originally to expand his father's business, but then to be on stage. Agnes stays behind with their children and takes on the role of a healer for the town. When her daughter Judith contracts the plague, she is so focused on her daughter that she doesn't notice someone else struggling for help. 

 O' Farrell's portrayal of the characters in the story is extremely interesting because they are so relatable. Take Agnes: not much is actually known about her life. So much of her is a mystery that she doesn't always seem real. O' Farrell writes Agnes' journey through grief and loss in such a heart wrenching way that it is hard to not empathize with Agnes or her children. Now let's talk about William Shakespeare. Shakespeare is very well known, but O'Farrell still writes his character in a way that makes him seem new. We see so many different sides to him throughout the story, which also helps make him more human.

    So should you read Hamnet? Yes. Yes you should. It's a great book with a wonderful retelling of history that does a great job of illustrating the backstory of a Shakespeare play. On top of that, it's also just a really nice book to read if you want the perfect level of dramatic and sad. I loved it, but I love historical books so I'm not surprised. After this I'm definitely going to try to read Hamlet. Or watch it. Preferably both.


- Citlali :)

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