Hamnet is set in 1580 as the Black Death creeps across England. A young Latin tutor—penniless and bullied by a violent father—falls in love with an extraordinary, eccentric young woman who becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose career on the London stage is taking off when his beloved young son succumbs to sudden fever.
Born in Northern Ireland, Maggie O'Farrell grew up in Wales and Scotland and now lives in Edinburgh. She has worked as a waitress, chambermaid, bike messenger, teacher, arts administrator, and journalist (in Hong Kong and London), and as the deputy literary editor of The Independent on Sunday. She is the author of numerous award-winning books, including After You’d Gone, winner of the Betty Trask Award; The Distance Between Us, recipient of a Somerset Maugham Award; and Instructions for a Heatwave, winner of a Costa Book Award.
“This novel is at once about the transfiguration of life into art. . . and a master class in how O’Farrell herself does it. . . . As the book unfolds, it brings its story to a tender and ultimately hopeful conclusion: that even the greatest grief, the most damaged marriage, and most shattered heart might find some solace, some healing.” —Geraldine Brooks
Tickets Prices:
Public virtual ticket + copy of Hamnet with a signed bookplate shipped directly to your home: $44
DMA Member/Educator/Student virtual ticket + copy of Hamnet with a signed bookplate shipped directly to your home: $40
Virtual ticket (no book): $10