This is a story of how a great loss resounds through literary history. Hamnet was Shakespeare's son. The father son relationship was frayed. 11 year old Hamnet was left to be the "man of the family" back home while Shakespeare lived the life of an honored playwright in London. The relationship between Shakespeare and Anne/Agnes alternates between great love, admiration for her strength and independence, and abandonment. It was the time of the plague, of constant struggle and great tragedy. If we are to accept O'Farrell's history, the tragedy of Hamlet was a way for Shakespeare to honor that son and acknowledge the debt he owed his wife. I struggled with the omniscient narrator at first but once Anne took over as the primary voice, I was thoroughly caught up in the story. Guess we will never tire of the Shakespeare mystery.
Saturday, June 12, 2021
The Fortunes by Peter Ho Davies
This is really four separate stories all related to the Chinese-American experience. The first is told against the background of the gold rush and the building of the transcontinental railroad. Ah Ling leaves his impoverished life in China for the "Gold Mountain"and becomes a servant to a wealthy man. The second story follows the career of Anna Mae Wong, a movie star who, although a great beauty, struggled to overcome racial barriers to her career. The racially motivated beating of Vincent Chin is the core of the third story. This story happened in our life time. Did we notice? Finally a young couple goes to China to adopt a baby girl and struggle with what it means to be hyphenated. All explore the Chinese-American experience in various decades. All are based are real stories. There are positive moments but mostly the stories raise many questions about identity and the roots of prejudice.