A review by shorthedgehog
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

5.0

Not so much a review as a preface, I feel as though this book is more commonly advertised/describes as a book about the life of Shakespeare and his family. After buying this I found the idea to put me off thinking it would be too hard to read and not the kind of entertainment I favour, but in fact not once in the book are the words ‘William’ or ‘Shakespeare’ so much as mentioned. Instead he is often referred to as things such as, ‘the gloves maker’s son’ or ‘the Latin tutor’. Instead it is a story of family and loss and how people deal with that loss, a breaking down of communication as well as so much more. Again it’s a story about life that I found myself loving so much. I think anyone could relate to this story and the relationships with it, so if you’ve been putting it off this is your sign to pick it up.