A bold reimagining of Shakespeare’s stormy tale of vengeance, forgiveness and the power of theatre. 4/5 stars.
The blurb: Hag-Seed is a re-visiting of Shakespeare’s play of magic and illusion, The Tempest, and is the fourth novel in the Hogarth Shakespeare series.
The Tempest is set on a remote island full of strange noises and creatures. Here, Prospero, the deposed Duke of Milan, plots to restore the fortunes of his daughter Miranda by using magic and illusion — starting with a storm that will bring Antonio, his treacherous brother, to him. All Prospero, the great sorcerer, needs to do is watch as the action he has set in train unfolds.
In Margaret Atwood’s ‘novel take’ on Shakespeare’s original, theatre director Felix has been unceremoniously ousted from his role as Artistic Director of the Makeshiweg Festival. When he lands a job teaching theatre in a prison, the possibility of revenge presents itself – and his cast find themselves taking part in an interactive and illusion-ridden version of The Tempest that will change their lives forever…
My take:
As part of the Hogarth Shakespeare project, Atwood is one of several authors invited to reimagine one of Shakespeare’s stories. Hag-Seed is Atwood’s take on one of the Bard’s last plays, The Tempest. If you’d like to know more about the other authors involved in the project and the stories they were asked to tackle (for example, Tracy Chevalier’s take on Othello), you can find out more here.
I studied The Tempest for 2 years at school and so it’s probably the Shakespeare play I know the best. This definitely influenced my enjoyment of Hag-Seed, which I’m not convinced you’d get a lot out of if you know nothing about the original play.
However, if you do have some foreknowledge of The Tempest, you’ll quickly notice that Hag-Seed is an incredibly inventive reimagining of Shakespeare’s tale. Bringing the story into the present and having a disgruntled theatre director cast himself as an all-powerful Prospero in a version of the play performed in a jail by convicts… well, it’s all incredibly “meta”, but then so is The Tempest.
And, for those who aren’t very fond of the Shakespeare original, Atwood gives us some fantastic new characters in her cast of convicts who are persuaded and manipulated into enthusiastically staging the play. Another brilliant touch is how modern swearing is banned from rehearsals and the prisoners are only allowed to use curse words from the play itself. Hopefully I won’t spend too many days itching to say, “A pox on that” and calling people “scurvy”.
I enjoyed most of the story, and was impressed how Atwood made me feel genuine concern for Felix and his mental state; I don’t think I ever felt that much sympathy for Shakespeare’s Prospero! The only part I didn’t enjoy as much was towards the end of the book where several chapters became reminiscent of a Shakespeare study guide. That said, anyone studying The Tempest should definitely read Hag-Seed as it can only help their understanding and appreciation of Shakespeare’s play and his works as a whole.
Overall: I’m not sure this is one for you if you’ve never read or seen The Tempest. However, if you have any idea what the play’s about, you’re sure to find something to enjoy in Atwood’s witty, lively take on Shakespeare.
Claire Huston / Art and Soul
I have to say that I am not as familiar with The Tempest as I am some of Shakespeare’s other works, but I will definitely look into this series. Thanks for the recommendation!
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I hope you enjoy it. I think anyone with any knowledge of the play will find something to enjoy in Atwood’s novel 🙂
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I haven’t actually read the original play, but have seen movies based on it, so I am intrigued enough to consider this one. Thanks for sharing.
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If you’ve seen movie adaptations then this would be a really interesting novel for comparison. The way she manages to incorporate certain scenes into her story vs. how directors get them into their films 🙂 All these people are so imaginative! I don’t think I’d be brave enough to take Shakespeare on!
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Great review! I loved this book, and agree—it was a great reimagining of Shakespeare’s play! 🙂
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Thank you!
I thought it was great fun and I take my hat off to her for how she comes up with such great ideas. The way she got the banquet scene and the arrival of the harpy in was sheer genius. Inside her head must be a fascinating place 🙂
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Excellent review Claire. I have yet to read Atwood!!
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Thank you! Start with The Handmaid’s Tale – I still think it’s her best 🙂
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I’m happy to see you enjoyed this one. I’ve always wanted to read one of her books, but honestly I’m a little intimidated by them!
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I usually find they’re either hit or miss! (although always very well-written). The Handmaid’s Tale is still my favourite 🙂
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I’ll have to get this one following your post Claire.
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Hooray! I hope you like it. I don’t know where she gets her ideas from. I’d love to have 1% of her imagination!
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Umm I know pretty much nothing about the play so I’m wondering if getting this was a wise idea. 🤔
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Hmn. I think it could be fun regardless, but it might all be a bit too bizarre! 🙂
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I really must get this on my reading pile!
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It’s great fun and shows Atwood certainly hasn’t lost her touch! 🙂
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Great review! I admit I’m not familiar with The Tempest but I’ll definitely keep this one in mind.
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It’s very imaginative (as we’d expect from Atwood) and funny in places. She’s done extraordinary things with the “project” she was given. Looking forward to Gillian Flynn’s version of Othello! 🙂
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