Historical Fiction · MelancholicA fictional account of Agnes Hathaway, William Shakespeare and their son Hamnet, and the family's grief
Hamnet
The Shakespeare family's grief over the death of their son, imagined by Maggie O'Farrell
Agnes Hathaway is a herbalist in Elizabethan England, married to William Shakespeare, and their son is Hamnet. The novel is a fictional account of the family, centered on the parents' grief over their son's illness and death, including Stratford-upon-Avon. It draws on known facts of Shakespeare's life but adds imagined details. In Canada it was published as Hamnet & Judith. A 2023 stage version premiered at the Royal Shakespeare Company, and Chloé Zhao directed a film released in 2026.
More about this book
Who
Agnes Hathaway, a herbalist, William Shakespeare and their son Hamnet.
World
Elizabethan England, including Stratford-upon-Avon.
What makes it different
It is a fictional account built on known facts of Shakespeare's life.
Feel
Moving and grief-laden. It also won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- HamnetWikipedia