HamletHamlet
Score Classic
What it's about
Hamlet, the young prince of Denmark, comes home for his father's funeral and finds his mother already married to his uncle, Claudius, the new king. Then his father's ghost appears and tells him Claudius murdered him. Hamlet swears revenge, but he can't bring himself to act, and as he pretends to be mad, or perhaps becomes so, the court around him begins to fall apart.
Why it's worth reading
It's on the Bokklubben list of the 100 greatest books and is often called the greatest play ever written. It has given the language more famous lines than almost any other work.
You'll love it if you liked
Anna Karenina
The Metamorphoses
The StrangerGood to know
It's a play, and seeing a production, or watching a film like Kenneth Branagh's, helps. An annotated edition explains the language.
By the numbers
- Readers51 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics55 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller36 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
Why it made the list
Reads as
Moving
More by William Shakespeare
King Lear
Othello
MacbethIf you like this, read next
East of Eden
War and Peace
Augustus
Beloved
The Souls of Black Folk
The IdiotExplore the best-of lists
All 36 best-of lists →
Quick answers
Is Hamlet worth reading?
Yes. It's on the Bokklubben list of the 100 greatest books and is often called the greatest play ever written. It ranks #1,093 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 72.0 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Hamlet about?
Hamlet, the young prince of Denmark, comes home for his father's funeral and finds his mother already married to his uncle, Claudius, the new king. Then his father's ghost appears and tells him Claudius murdered him. Hamlet swears revenge, but he can't bring himself to act, and as he pretends to be mad, or perhaps becomes so, the court around him begins to fall apart.
How long does it take to read Hamlet?
About 13 hours (508 pages), or about 4 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Hamlet?
If you liked it, try Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, The Metamorphoses by Ovid or The Stranger by Albert Camus.