2026 REREAD:

4.5 - I still really love what this book is doing, but I don’t think I enjoyed it quite as much as I did the first time.

Everything I said in my original review still rings true, but I think upon reading it again, I wanted a bit more insight into the other family members. We do get their grief and their reaction, but in smaller bursts than we do for Agnes. On one hand this makes sense since she’s the mother and arguably the main character, but I think getting interiority from Mary or even John and seeing their grief would’ve added another layer thematically. This is a small thing though. For the most part, I feel the same and think that the fact that I didn’t enjoy it as much this time boils down to the fact that I wasn’t really in the mood for this kind of novel but was engaging with it out of necessity. Definitely still recommend!

2024 READ:

4.75 - the writing in this book . . . I want to eat it.

I think initially how strong the prose is is what really drew me into this book, I mean the language and style is just beautiful and when paired with the imagery it feels both so unique and fitting for the story being told, but the further I got into the plot the more I really began to appreciate the character development as well. I really enjoyed all the characters I was supposed to love, hated the ones I was supposed to hate, and I think the emotions of these characters was displayed so well and in such a raw way within this novel. Especially when Hamnet eventually dies, you can feel the utter heartbreak that all of them experience and I feel as though all the ways in which they react make sense and feel natural.

I also really liked the choice to leave the father nameless. This in part might have been to avoid using the name “William Shakespeare,” but I think his lack of a name made it clear that this story is not about the father. He is an important character, yes, but it is about the family as a whole. I think in some way, making it so that he is unnamed allows the women of the story into the spotlight, and I also think later on in the story when he is away in London, it adds an extra layer to the feeling of detachment that his family feels. I really liked him as a character and it was a relief to have a “love interest” who was a normal guy, so the little extra plot line of him cheating on Agnes made me so mad. It wasn’t needed 😭, she could’ve still felt as much anger towards him just for leaving after Hamnet’s death, I really didn’t think the adultery plot line added anything of value. It just made me take a step back from this character I’d really grown to love, which is such a shame.

Overall, though, so so good. I think this is one of those books where the plot itself isn’t particularly interesting, but the way it’s written and the way it evokes emotion makes the ordinary seem extraordinary. Really enjoyed.