Name: Henry Hamlet's Heart
ISBN: 9780702263149

Rhiannon Wilde

Henry Hamlet's Heart

Rani Jango

Dani

Sweet and gripping. A lovely YA coming-of-age that will have you smiling like a fool and reminiscing on your younger years and the intensity with which you felt everything. I particularly related to Henry and his constant existential crises, his failure to see beyond his insecurities and his tendency to project his anxieties in the form of anger and indignation. I loved Len and his polished exterior, his compulsion to protect his heart by bringing up walls around him… While also having Henry be his heart, constantly stepping to protect him and his feelings. I loved this tacit understanding between them that they were one and acted as one. I think it’s just a specific combination of elements I’ll never fail to fall for. 

Also, the use of Rilke’s work to set the tone for each part of the book was absolutely lovely, and definitely played a part in me consuming this in a matter of hours. I love Rilke, and I love how he argues for feeling it all, letting it all happen to you. He posits that suffering isn’t wasted on you, that all emotion is right and true — this is definitely true to what this book is trying to communicate and I thought it gave a wholesome end result. All in all, this book felt like a warm, fuzzy hug from the past (from my own high school years, my own sadnesses and disappointments but also each and every smile) only for it to reach me now, after all these years, at a time when I finally feel ready to take it for what it is.

nina 

This book was straight up serotonin and nostalgia injected into my veins. [4]

One of those stories that make you feel so (sometimes uncomfortably) transparent when reading, but in a really good way. 

Alana May

sydney

I liked the actual story but I did not enjoy the writing style at all. It would be two stars but the Ben Mckenzie and Seth Cohen references make it 3 stars.

eden

I didn’t like the writing style. I hated all the pop culture references and didn't understand any actual cultural references since it's in Australia. there is an incest line that got repeated three times, and hp references that pissed me off. but henry and len were cute and I liked henry enough to push through it. overall slightly above average. also, the ending is ambiguous from henry’s side there was something related to him that was dropped around the last quarter (even though it was an actual point in the plot)

Lukas Ellerbrook

thank you to netgalley and charlesbridge for the e-arc

I thought this book was really wonderful. I love reading YA, especially LGBTQ+ YA that takes place in other countries than the US as I feel like we really lack in that for this genre.

Henry is such a relatable character to me. When I was the same age, I didn't know what I wanted either after I graduated. I was confused and clumsy. I am also always down for a nice friends to lovers trope as well, always warms my heart.

I will definitely be giving it a re-read when it's published in it's physical form. 

valentina

This was such a cute book! I loved the little tidbits of Australian culture in the book and the cast of characters was really lovable. Henry was such an entertaining character to follow and I found myself really appreciating his family and their dynamics as well. My biggest (and possibly only) gripe with the book would be the abundance of male characters, but I felt like the author really tried to include as much of the female characters who were there to make up for it. Thanks to NetGalley and Charlesbridge for the ARC.

Hannah Kingsley

The perfect book to get me out of a reading slump! Genuinely laughed many times throughout the book and the relationships between characters were very real and sweet. 

Henry Hamlet's Heart

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