Here is another book that’s way outside my wheelhouse. Got it for $2 at a charity shop, didn’t know anything about it, but I knew it was very successful and had something to do with Shakespeare.

Sometimes it’s best to go in blind.

It’s basically a historical fiction of Shakespeare’s actual family, and how the death of his son may have influenced his work. This is a book that deserves to be read in as few sessions as possible.

The author is terrific (and accomplished, it turns out). The writing is immersive and addictive, it is poetic and dreamlike and suits the time frame without being too ornate or difficult. It’s subtle but not complicated. I’m not a Shakespeare guy (I didn’t even know that he had a son, much less lost one!) but parts of this made me wish I was. (Right on cue, The Millions publishes a piece that does an excellent job of setting the table for this book)

It took no time at all to be pulled all the way in, and it was difficult to put down. The last chapter of the book is essentially a third of the total, and explores the aftermath of Hanmet’s death, going deep on grief and how different people process and experience it. It earns all of the praise this book has received.

I had a couple issues with the first part of the book – the chapters alternate timelines in a way that felt a bit muddled, and in a couple of places the author goes through some obvious acrobatics to not name Shakespeare (which is a smart move! Shakespeare isn’t the focus of this book at all! But it’s awkward to see the strings).

It’s all moot though. The last part is a wringer, and having gone through that I will gladly pick up the next O’Farrell book I come across.