Hamlet: A Novel of the Snopes Family [School & Library Binding]

W. Faulkner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1991 | ISBN-10: 0613557190 | ISBN-13: 978-0613557191

The Hamlet, the first novel of Faulkner's Snopes trilogy, is both an ironic take on classical tragedy and a mordant commentary on the grand pretensions of the antebellum South and the depths of its decay in the aftermath of war and Reconstruction. It tells of the advent and the rise of the Snopes family in Frenchman's Bend, a small town built on the ruins of a once-stately plantation. Flem Snopes -- wily, energetic, a man of shady origins -- quickly comes to dominate the town and its people with his cunning and guile.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The Hamlet, the first novel of Faulkner's Snopes trilogy, is both an ironic take on classical tragedy and a mordant commentary on the grand pretensions of the antebellum South and the depths of its decay in the aftermath of war and Reconstruction. It tells of the advent and the rise of the Snopes family in Frenchman's Bend, a small town built on the ruins of a once-stately plantation. Flem Snopes -- wily, energetic, a man of shady origins -- quickly comes to dominate the town and its people with his cunning and guile.


From the Trade Paperback edition. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

William Faulkner was born in New Albany, Mississippi, on September 25, 1897. He published his first book, The Marble Faun (a collection of poems), in 1924, and his first novel, Soldier's Pay, in 1926. In 1949, having written such works as Absalom, Absalom!, As I Lay Dying, Light in August, and The Sound and the Fury, Faulkner was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. He also received the Pulitzer Prize for two other novels, A Fable (1954) and The Reivers (1962). From 1957 to 1958 he was Writer-in-Residence at the University of Virginia. He died on July 6, 1962, in Byhalia, Mississippi.


From the Trade Paperback edition. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• School & Library Binding
• Publisher: San Val (October 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0613557190
• ISBN-13: 978-0613557191
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 4.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,915,271 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Faulkner's Masterpieces, May 25, 2010

By 

Dr. Bojan Tunguz (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Hamlet (Paperback)

"The Hamlet" is one of Faulkner's later works, and it belongs to his so-called "Snopes Trilogy." It deals with travails of the Snopes family, first introduced in "The Unvanquished." Various parts of the book can be read as independent stories, and some have even been published as such. The book, like most other Faulkner works, is highly literally and can be challenging to read if you are not used to Faulkner's narrative style. It is also characterized with rich language that verges on poetic. The language and the narrative fall short of the stream-of-consciousness style of many of the Faulkner's best known masterpieces, but not by much.

The book's many characters go through significant personal transformations, and in the process leave a mark on the community that they live in. The psychological insight into various individual psyches and the analysis of their drives and motivations is nothing short of phenomenal. This novel is an impressive work of art, and as such it needs to be appreciated slowly and deliberately. It is certainly not a quick read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glorious, October 4, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Hamlet (Paperback)

An excellent intro to Faulkner. Beautifully written and one of his most accessible works. See the "Long Hot Summer" with Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward which is a filmisation of a novella of the same name in 'The Hamlet'. Great stuff!