Henry Hamlet’s Heart

Henry Hamlet’s Heart by Rhiannon Wilde (University of Queensland Press) PB RRP $19.99 ISBN 9780702263149

Reviewed by Kylie Buckley

Set in Brisbane in 2008, Henry Hamlet is in his final year of high school. He spends his time between school captain duties, debate team responsibilities, studying and hanging out with his small group of friends – Len, Ged, Harrison and Vince - otherwise known as ‘The Boiyss’. Henry is socially awkward, an overthinker, and unsure about many things. In contrast, his childhood best friend Len is confident, charming, and popular with the ladies.

Henry is just trying to get through an already big year when a game of ‘truth or dare’ changes everything. It becomes the catalyst for big change in his life and big feelings to emerge… feelings he is not sure how to deal with.

Henry Hamlet’s Heart is a coming-of-age novel written in the first person. The light-hearted narrative encapsulates LGBTQIA+ teenage love, friendship dynamics, family diversity and embracing who you are. The ‘friends to lovers’ tale also includes an intriguing list of supporting characters and interesting side stories.

Henry Hamlet’s Heart

Henry Hamlet’s Heart by Rhiannon Wilde (University of Queensland Press) RRP $19.99 ISBN 9780702263149

Reviewed by Wendy Haynes

Henry Hamlet’s Heart, the first YA novel by talented author Rhiannon Wilde, won the State Library of Queensland Glendower Award for an emerging Queensland writer in 2019.

Henry Hamlet’s Heart is ultimately a love story and finding love in unexpected places. Told in first person, the reader is taken on a thought-provoking ride, walking in Henry’s shoes as he navigates the last semester of high school, the stress of exams, the pressure of ‘what’s next,’ and simply finding his way in life.

The story explores the friendship of a close-knit group of teenagers but particularly the long-standing friendship between Henry and Len. Sexuality is unravelled, opened, though not explicit, and gives the reader the opportunity to explore with the main character the emotional roller coast of love and falling hard.

This story also explores who you are to you, and who you are in the eyes of others, and how there are shades of grey in just about everything. The author has captured the essence of what it’s like for a teenager experiencing feelings for another human being, and how feelings get mashed up. The author meshes mood with the setting in an evocative way adding an extra layer of depth to her characters.