Read this when
Hamlet
When everyone's moved on and you're still standing at the funeral. Hamlet gets it: 'I have that within which passes show.' 🖤
Who it's for
Hamlet is the classic mirror for someone grieving while everyone else has already moved on: his father is barely buried, his mother has married his uncle, and the court is celebrating.
Feelings it meets
What it is
Shakespeare's tragedy, written around 1599–1601, is set at the Danish court, where Prince Hamlet is grieving his father, the late king. His uncle Claudius has taken the throne and married Hamlet's mother, Gertrude. A ghost who appears to be his father tells Hamlet that Claudius murdered the king to take the crown and the queen.
Where to find it
Public domain in the US; free on Project Gutenberg, Standard Ebooks and the Folger Shakespeare website. Widely in print (Folger, Arden) and in libraries (Libby/Hoopla); several full-cast audio product.
Before you start
Heads up: Suicidal contemplation and murders.
Age: Ages 14+
It is the little things that I leave behind for my loved ones,—great things are for everyone.Rabindranath Tagore, Stray Birds, no. 178
