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“What do you read, my lord?” “Words, words, words.”

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

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Considering how much intrigue and debate there still is about Williams Shakespeare, arguably the most famous writer of all time, its not surprising that there is even less verified information about his relations. That Shakespeare was married and had three children is well-known, as is the sad fact of his only son’s passing at a young age, but their lives and personalities are largely a mystery. Into this void steps Maggie O’Farrell with her novel Hamnet. In the absence of documentary fact, O’Farrell feels free […]

A novel of grief

Hamnet: A Novel of the Plague by Maggie O’Farrell

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This could very well end up as one of my favorites for 2021. O’Farrell’s novel imagines the death of William Shakespeare’s young son Hamnet and the grief the envelops the family as a result. I could not put this book down, it is so beautifully written and heart wrenching. While Shakespeare is a character in the novel (never named but obviously him), the main character is Agnes, his wife and mother to Hamnet, Hamnet’s twin Judith and Susannah. It is mainly through her eyes that […]

I Can’t Tell One From Another

This Must Be The Place by Maggie O'Farrell

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Did I buy this book because I’ve read Maggie O’Farrell before and generally liked her work? Sure. Did I REALLY buy this book because it was a buck at Goodwill and quoted the Talking Heads? Yeah, that’s the main reason. I didn’t even judge a book by its cover, I judged it by the title. This is why I have something like 200 unread books in my house. I have a problem. Anyway, this sort of felt a bit like The Vanishing Act of Esme […]

Almost wasn’t

I am, I am, I am by Maggie o’Farrell

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Man, life is so flipping fragile it’s a wonder any of us survive past infancy. I work at a children’s hospital and see all the ways that one gene flips or one chromosome is duplicated or deleted and suddenly bam, your lifespan goes from 75 to 14, so I have always been acutely aware of this fact (I was real fun during pregnancy, trust me). My problem is I see the race as having been won. I’ve made it this far and so I’m safe, […]

We are, all of us, wandering about in a state of oblivion, borrowing our time, seizing our days, escaping our fates, slipping through loopholes, unaware of when the axe may fall.

I am I am I am by Maggie O'Farrell

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CBR10Bingo – Cannonballer Says Here’s the original review: Seventeen Brushes With Death Is … A Lot This memoir or collection of narrative essays, depending on exactly how you look at it, deals with what Maggie O’Farrell describes in the title as Seventeen Brushes with Death. And it’s important to note from the outset, that what will be become clear if you read the book, is that she never limits herself to her own specific brushes with death. And thankfully, she doesn’t co-opt anyone else’s. It’s […]

Seventeen Brushes With Death Is … A Lot

I Am I Am I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death by Maggie O'Farrell

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Best for: Those who enjoy literary non-fiction and are not deterred by fairly grim subject matters. In a nutshell: Author Maggie O’Farrell examines, with lovely prose, moments in her life that could have led to her imminent death. Worth quoting: “Crossing time zones in this way can bring upon you an unsettling, distorted clarity. Is it the altitude, the unaccustomed inactivity, the physical confinement, the lack of sleep, or a collision of all four?” “To be so unheard, so disregarded, so disbelieved: I was unprepared […]



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