| Maggie O'Farrell |
Maggie O’Farrell scoops Waterstones Book of the Year award for Hamnet
The bookseller’s award is just the latest in a string of accolades that Maggie O’Farrell has won for her heart-wrenching novel about the death of Shakespeare’s only son Hamnet; here she talks about child mortality, how she recreated an authentic 16th century voice, and why she is turning to writing children’s stories; plus an exclusive extract from Hamnet
By Katie Law
03 December 2020
| Maggie O'Farrell |
H
amnet by Maggie O’Farrell is announced today as Waterstones’ Book of the Year 2020. The novel reimagines the short life and tragic early death of Shakespeare’s son Hamnet, who died in 1596 aged 11 from the Bubonic Plague, and shines a light on how his family coped, in particular his mother Agnes. Four years later, Shakespeare wrote what many consider to be his greatest play, Hamlet.