Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell: fleeting & beautful
In describing the theme of the book Waterstones says: One of our greatest living novelists resurrects the short life of Hamnet Shakespeare, in this lyrically written and emotionally devastating account of the Bard’s only son. Utterly immersive and convincing, Hamnet is a poignant period tale that not only shines a light on an oft-neglected area of Shakespearean history but speaks to wider themes of grief and loss with impeccable poise and unflinching honesty. The words “speaks to wider themes” I connected to the fact that a single piece of writing can awaken many impressions within us. Reading Hamnet I was reminded of the words of another writer below: “No single event can awaken within us a stranger whose existence we had never suspected. To live is to be slowly born.” Antoine de Saint Exupéry (1900-1944). His point, according to Bodhipaksa , was that these awakenings are not random, they come from somewhere. A chain of cause and effect. I feel that w...