“A friend recommended this book to me, and it sat on my bedside table for months before I finally picked it up. ‘Hamnet,’ by Maggie O’Farrell. Just wow. I was not prepared for how good this book would be. Literary, gorgeous, atmospheric. Even as I started it, I was just thinking I would read it quickly before beginning my book club book. By two chapters in, I was completely inhabiting the lives of these people in 16th Century Stratford. Even as I write this, I feel like I am sitting in the corner of Agnes’ kitchen, watching the fire and breathing in the scent of drying herbs. Yes, it is set during that most famous of plagues, but trust me, it is worth reliving a plague year for this luminous book!” — ROBIN ELLIOTT, SOUTH PORTLAND


Mainers, please email to tell us about the book on your bedside table right now. In a few sentences, describe the book and be sure to tell us what drew you to it. With the path of the pandemic again uncertain, we especially want to hear what you are reading in these challenging times and why. Send your selection to pgrodinsky@pressherald.com, and we may use it as a future Bedside Table.


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