Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

221 reviews

majakrmer's review against another edition

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emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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steph_canread's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

4.5

the start was a little slow but the ending is so worth it!! part two made me cry. such a beautiful read and such a good way of exploring a woman’s life who mostly goes unknown.
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murphysmate's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

Poetically written, with no sense of modernity.
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annamolpus's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

I don't generally gravitate towards historical fiction - this one was for a book group - but the writing was so strong here that I couldn't put it down.  I became totally immersed, particularly because I cared so deeply for these characters.  The book may be named after Hamnet but his mother Agnes was the star.
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arshiya_amreen90786's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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am__flynn's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

The prose in this book is stunning. Agnes is a wonderful character, with whom the reader can simultaneously empathise and admire. But it is the visceral descriptions of grief, the evocative descriptions of place and the thoughtful sculpting of the tiny, almost mundane details of the characters' thoughts and actions that that make this book something really special. 
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seanml's review against another edition

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informative reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I'd never read Maggie O'Farrell before this. Her prose is immaculate. For a book with so many quiet moments, her fluidity perfectly captures the wandering  mind and all of its hiccups and shortcomings. The lack of formal acknowledgement of Shakespeare allows the audience to focus on the principal characters until it matters most. That's all; wonderfully written. 8.5/10.
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lauraturpin's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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loserbook's review

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emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I was relatively nervous about starting this book; everyone had told me wonders about it and the idea that it would disappoint made me hesitant. However, it was not at all. This beautifully written novel on grief and motherhood has become one of my favorite books already. Its lyricism and sentimentalism style pulled me and prevented me from dropping the book at any point, always wanted to know how the current chapter would end just to continue another timeline's story in the next one... The alternating eras, that go from Hamnet's last days to his mother Agnes' younger years and the beginning of her marriage, creates an addictive loop that will make you want to see the mysterious characters' lives without missing a detail.
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aaliyah_lomas15's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

It personally didn't feel like a focus on and celebration of Hamnet's life like it promises. However, the ending is incredibly powerful, I loved it. I found it difficult to get into the novel at the beginning. The writing when focused on Hamnet and Judith being ill didn't grasp me. However, the chapters focused on the past with the Latin Tutor/Brother/Father (eventually) and Agnes hooked me, I couldn't wait to read those chapters. After Hamnet's death, the author explores grief superbly and beautifully lyrically. And, did I mention? WOW that ending. Powerful, beautiful, brilliant. The writing didn't hook me throughout the entire novel, I found it a bit clunky and very heavy on the similes and metaphors, but it works beautifully in that last third of the novel. Overall, I recommend this pretty highly just for the Agnes storyline and the ending. 
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