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Background

Published in 2022 by Alfred Knopf.

Genre: Historical Fiction

Setting: Renaissance Florence and rural Italy

Additional Notes and reviews:

Reviews were mixed. Some readers objected to what they see as a “modern” woman portrayed as historical, but I would submit that none of these people has read any Renaissance literature by actual women. They are making assumptions and do not present evidence for their opinions. Some readers object to what they call overblown, melodramatic prose. I found it beautiful, but I liked Hamnet, too.

New York Times Review

Review at Readerly.net

Theme: Agency in the face of a power structure that is aligned against you.

Things we thought AUTHOR did well as a writer that we would like to emulate.:

• Dual Timeline Both timelines were equally compelling, which can be difficult to do. She managed to keep us curious and keep the tension mounting with how questions and why questions, because we knew the what.

• Centering Women in the Narrative—The women are the stars of the show.