Book Notes | 'Hamnet'
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell is an historical novel that imagines the courtship and early domestic life of William Shakespeare and his wife, Agnes, at the time of the bubonic plague in the late 1500s.
Most of the story is set in Stratford-on-Avon and in Hewlands, a farming community a mile or so west of Stratford, where William teaches Latin at the grammar school and Agnes grows herbs and plants and raises honeybees. The story ends in London at the Globe Theater where the play Hamlet is performed.
The novel is organized along two parallel story lines. The author describes life in the community before Agnes and William meet and marry. We also learn about their parents and siblings.
The second story line takes place in the present, on a day in which the Shakespeares’ daughter Judith is sick. As she lies in bed with a fever and developing buboes, the novelist shows what other members of the family are doing. The focus is on Hamnet, Judith’s twin, who spends his day looking for someone to help his sister.
When Agnes returns home, she swaddles Judith is a basket close to the fireplace. Unbeknownst to Agnes, Hamnet then crawls in beside his twin and cuddles. Only one of the children survives.
Grief at the loss of a child
The story based in the present conveys the grief the parents feel at the loss of one of their children and the form this grief takes in both their lives.
It is thought that the play Hamlet was written and produced in memory of Hamnet.
Most members of the UMRA Book Club liked the book or at least parts of it, including the tie-in to the plague. Agnes was the character many of the readers found the most interesting. One member particularly appreciated her intuition. Agnes’s brother Bartholomew was also a favorite character. He knew how to deal with his sister’s husband in a teasing manner.
One member said, “I thank author Maggie O’Farrell [for this book]; there is a depth of knowledge and skills here.” The author’s description of grief was especially powerful.
—Becky Anderson, UMRA Book Club member
Book Club I to meet August 19
Fri, Aug 19 2022, 2pm
Becky Anderson will lead the discussion of Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell when the UMRA Book Club I meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, August 19.
Email Pat Tollefson for more information, including suggestions for starting a new book club.
Upcoming Events
Joni Mitchell will lead the discussion of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne when the UMRA book club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, April 19.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has attracted substantial debate recently because it can be used in many contexts, including educational settings to do things such as answer exam questions and write papers. But what is generative AI? And how can we know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing? Law School Professor Daniel Schwarcz will enlighten us during UMRA’s Luncheon Forum on April 23.
UMRA’s spring Armchair Traveler Program from 10 to 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 24, will take us to South Korea with Marilyn DeLong and to Germany with Lynn C. Anderson. Please mark your calendars and save the date.
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We are fortunate to have Peter Moe, UMRA member and former Minnesota Landscape Arboretum director, to lead this approximately 3.7-mile hike at the Arboretum on Monday, May 6! Plan to have lunch together after the hike at the Eatery café inside the Oswald Visitor Center.
This session will continue the discussion begun in the May 8, 2023 session. See that article for details.
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Stephanie Daily will lead the discussion of Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by best-selling author Mary Roach when the UMRA Book Club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 17.
The May 20 hike will start at the Historic Lift Bridge in Stillwater and go along the river to the new bridge, cross over and then back on the Wisconsin side, a total of approximately 5 miles. Most of the route is paved. We will eat lunch after at Brian's Bar and Grill in Stillwater. Car pooling will be available.
Climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley joined the U of M faculty in 1978 and has been a weekly commentator on Minnesota Public Radio since 1992. We are honored to welcome him as our guest speaker for UMRA’s May Luncheon Forum and 2024 Annual Meeting. He is always entertaining and informative.
UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club welcomes back, for the second time, author Julie Schumacher, U of M Regents professor of creative writing and English, for a conversation about her novel The Shakespeare Requirement.
Get out to the ballpark with fellow UMRA members for the annual U of M Day at Target Field as the Minnesota Twins take on the Oakland Athletics on June 14 at 7:10 p.m.
Picnic under the covered, open-air Como pavilion, gaze at the water, spy some birds, catch up with friends and former colleagues, and meet new members. We’ll have lunch with plenty of time for visiting and then compete in teams as we are challenged by our Quiz master(s)!
Healthy aging, mindfulness, fighting ageism, and more will be the focus of the third annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held on the U of M Twin Cities campus.