Hamlet [Hardcover]

John Marsden (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 11, 2009

The Dane as never seen before — in a daring, dazzling, sexy prose retelling of Shakespeare’s tragedy by best-selling author John Marsden.

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark, but Hamlet can’t be sure what’s causing the stench. His rage at his mother’s infidelities — together with his greed for the sensual Ophelia and his dead father’s call to revenge a "murder most foul" — have his mind in chaos, and he wants to scatter his traitorous uncle’s insides across the fields. But was it really his father’s ghost that night on the ramparts, or a hell-fiend sent to trick him? "Action is hot," he tells Ophelia, who lives shut up in a tower with her longings and lust. "Action is courage, and reflection is cowardly. Picking up the knife has the colors of truth. As soon as I hesitate. . . ." In this dark, erotically charged, beautifully crafted novel, John Marsden brings one of Shakespeare’s most riveting characters to full-blooded life in a narrative of intense psychological complexity.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 9 Up—The story of Hamlet seems tailor-made for YA literature; it includes angst, unrequited love, drama, obsession, family issues, and self-doubt. In turning Shakespeare's play into a novel, Marsden has made it very accessible. The book is brief and the story moves quickly. Hamlet's indecision does not stall the action, but rather drives the narrative—readers wonder what, if anything, he will do. The setting is contemporary, but feels timeless. Marsden stays true to Shakespeare's text, while modernizing the dialogue. He makes the prince a sympathetic teen who is struggling with his hormones, his grief, and the fact that his uncle is now his stepfather. He is lonely, not only because of his royalty, but also because his drive to avenge his father has caused him to commit murder. Hamlet wants to be a man, but he's not sure if he's quite ready. This is a wonderful treatment of the play: engaging, gripping, dark, and lovely.—Geri Diorio, The Ridgefield Library, CT
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Review

"John Marsden has done what a legion of educators, my parents, a great number of my more literate friends and my read-anything-you-can-get-your-hands-on grandmother failed to do. He has made me, for one glorious moment, love Shakespeare. Marsden's version of HAMLET is smart, tough, lyrical, thoroughly readable and uncompromisingly engaging. Back off, Mrs. Phelps (my high school English teacher). I now get HAMLET." - Chris Crutcher — Quote

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
  
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (August 11, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076364451X
• ISBN-13: 978-0763644512
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.1 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #236,525 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars I Love Hamlet. This is Boring., October 1, 2011

By 

Nicola Manning (Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hamlet (Hardcover)

Reason for Reading: I enjoy Shakespeare retellings and Hamlet is probably my favourite Shakespeare.

The book tells the story of Shakespeare's Hamlet. The plot is there and all the major points are present. The author uses some of the original language while modernizing it yet keeping all the most famous quotes such as "to be or not to be". So to read this book one does get the plot of Shakespeare's Hamlet without having to read or experience the original. But I was not impressed with this retelling at all.

The darkness, brooding atmosphere of the original is missing. The time period is vague, it could be the recent past or timeless ages past. But most of all the portrayals of Hamlet and Ophelia are nothing as they are in the original. Ophelia is shown as nothing but a wanton sex-craving girl who dreams of nothing but mentally luring Hamlet to come to her. Her suicide is all matter of fact and hardly anyone seems to even care, least of all Hamlet who has much larger problems to deal with. Of course, as in the play, major plot point, it is Ophelia's brother who is upset at her death.

My greatest joy in the original plot of Hamlet is the question of his sanity. The movie starring Kenneth Branagh is a fabulous adaptation portraying this. Has Hamlet really gone insane or is he only pretending? This whole issue has been removed from Marsden's version. People around Hamlet speak of his madness as they would today of a teenager's rebellious stage. Hamlet himself speaks of his madness as if it were a cold. This version lacks passion and the intricacies of the original plot. And on top of all that, the appearance of Hamlet's father's ghost is a very brief single episode which, of course, plants the seed of revenge but is hardly an experience that could cause madness in anyone. All to say this is rather boring if you already know the plot of Hamlet and I wouldn't recommend it as an introduction; there must be something better out there. Not recommended.

2.0 out of 5 stars Not a great re-telling, February 22, 2010

By 

J. Prather (IN USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hamlet (Hardcover)

I wish I would have re-read Hamlet before tackling this contemporary remake. If I had done that, maybe I would have enjoyed this more, but as it was, I felt that this was a truly dull retelling of the classic story. I found the authors writing style very abrupt. I did not find it to be "beautiful prose" as one reviewer stated. This book did not flow well at all and the author did nothing to highlight the drama present in this story. It seems that so much could have been done with the characters, but instead they are lifeless and flat. Hamlet is a mess and Ophelia is nothing but a caricature of a sex starved adolescent. I was very disapointed with this effort and didn't finish the book. Reading this has inspired me to go back and read the play again so in that respect it was a worthwhile effort. In all others though, it seems to be a giant missed opportunity to do something that could have been great.

4.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, October 2, 2009

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hamlet (Hardcover)

Something's rotten in Denmark, but this time, it's not Shakespeare's normally confusing play. Marsden does a fantastic job of taking the Bard's poetic writing and updating it for modern readers.

Hamlet still faces issues the original author set for him (an unfaithful mother, a murderous uncle, the hauntingly attractive Ophelia), but the reader is able to delve more deeply into the characters as they are brought to life by Marsden's beautiful prose.

Since this is a modern version, it does have a few instances of cursing as well as some sexual innuendo, so I feel it would be better suited to older teens and adults.

Thanks to a fantastic high school English teacher, I never had trouble understanding HAMLET, but I enjoyed reading Marsden's version and seeing a more modern twist on the story.

Reviewed by: Joan Stradling