Book Review: Not all is as it seems in Margaret Atwood’s earthy adaptation of The Tempest
Hag-Seed is the latest offering from Hogarth Shakespeare, a series that takes Ben Jonson’s quote “He was not of an age, but for all time” seriously and publishes novels by acclaimed and best-selling authors retelling Shakespeare’s plays. Hag-Seed is Margaret Atwood’s contribution—a brilliant retelling of The Tempest that is as enjoyable to read as it must have been for Prospero to watch the storm he created.
Hag-Seed starts in the middle of its story with the beginning of a production of The Tempest:
The house lights dim. The audience quiets.
ON THE BIG FLATSCREEN: Jagged yellow lettering on black:
THE TEMPEST
By William Shakespeare
With
The Fletcher Correctional Players
The Fletcher Correctional Players? Yes, this is a Tempest performed within a prison, with its own particular language, which we hear right away when the announcer begins:
What you’re gonna see, is a storm at sea …