Hamnet

De: Maggie O'Farrell

Narrado por: Jessie Buckley

NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The bestselling author of The Marriage Portrait delivers a luminous portrait of a marriage, a family ravaged by grief, and a boy whose name was given to one of the most celebrated plays of all time. • “Of all the stories that argue and speculate about Shakespeare’s life ... here is a novel ... so gorgeously written that it transports you." —The Boston Globe

Soon to be a major motion picture directed by Chloé Zhao and starring Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Emily Watson, and Joe Alwyn.

England, 1580: The Black Death creeps across the land, an ever-present threat, infecting the healthy, the sick, the old and the young alike. The end of days is near, but life always goes on.

A young Latin tutor—penniless and bullied by a violent father—falls in love with an extraordinary, eccentric young woman. Agnes is a wild creature who walks her family’s land with a falcon on her glove and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer, understanding plants and potions better than she does people. Once she settles with her husband on Henley Street in Stratford-upon-Avon, she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose career on the London stage is just taking off when his beloved young son succumbs to sudden fever.

Amazing, amazing, amazing book

Jesse Buckley took this story to a place that left me absolutely breathless. Her exquisite and glorious rendition brought the characters to life in a way I’ve rarely seen matched. Just sublime.

Full of magic and love

Such a lovely and heartbreaking story of love and grief and beauty. Jessie Buckley is a wonderful performer!

So emotional!

I can’t believe how alive the book became after listening to this version, I read it when it first was published and am stunned at impact this reading had on me.

Narrator was beyond wonderful!!! Brought the words to life.

This author is a favorite. Her descriptive prose is delicious, her characters multi-dimensional yet straightforward, and choosing to never use the name Shakespeare reveals her total commitment to the story, not the subject.

Gorgeous

A stunning tale of grief and how a family deals with it in their own ways.

Tudor England as the backdrop for universal timeless truths. The best I’ve listened to in years.

“This is a work of historical fiction,” says the author. And so it is, but also so much more. It transcends that genre or any; it is a tale of grief, loss, complex relationship, self-determination, and redemption. A tale of human inadequacy, but striving. That Shakespeare is never named is such a stunning choice. Absolute brilliance. I love Agnes so dearly and relate to her so strongly. All of the characters though are so truly richly drawn. It absolutely transports you to tutoring England. But the themes are more than relevant for the current-day reader. The narration is subtle perfection, not only channeling the absolute beauty of the language of the prose, but breathing life into the spaces between the words.

Long but worth it

This book is a lot to get through but Hamlet is my favorite Shakespeare piece so even though a work of fiction I wanted to read it. It was relaxing and transports you to the time but it is a lot to read.

Heart blown open

Thank you Maggie, thank you Jessie for every beautiful tear. This was one of the best literary experiences I’ve ever had. 🥲🙏

What a good read this is!

I wasn’t sure what to expect but this book was such a great experience. The performance was riveting.

Very Enjoyable

This was a great story with absolutely phenomenal narration. I really enjoyed the listening experience.