Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Hilary Mantel’s 2009 Man Booker Prize winner, Wolf Hall, is a gloriously well-researched and executed piece of historical fiction.  It came as no surprise to me, upon finishing the novel, that Mantel is the first woman, and the first Britain to win the prize twice (her second award earned in 2012 for the following book in the Thomas Cromwell Trilogy, Bring up the Bodies).  Wolf Hall is an account of Tudor intrigue, encapsulated in the years 1527-1535.  Many a tale has been told of the volatile and infamous life-and-times of King Henry VIII, but Mantel’s story is a novel one.  All the key figures of the day are present: Cardinal Wolsey, Anne and Mary Boleyn, Thomas More, Stephen Gardiner, Thomas Howard, yet one distinction sets this version apart, the indomitable Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell, the book’s narrarator-at-large, notable for his humble beginnings as the son of a ne’er-do-well blacksmith, brewer, and notorious bully, sets out to make his own way in the world at fifteen.  It is his shrewd gaze that colors the political and social climate of the day in a wholly original hue. At turns a hard man, who never forgets a slight, and a generous soul with always a place in his bustling and successful household for one in need. Mantel’s Cromwell is imminently likeable.  At times, I found myself rooting for a man long-dead these 476 years.  I would highly recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction. You don’t need to be an expert on 16^th century English history to enjoy it, as it is peopled with a colorful cast and written with a fine grasp of wit and storytelling.

Jennifer Wilson

Wolf Hall

Hilary Mantel's newest novel blends fact and fiction to tell the story of Henry the VIII's challenge to the church's power, when he was determined to make Anne Boleyn his queen. It is told from the eyes of Thomas Cromwell who rose from the gutter to become Henry's right hand man, taking the place of Cardinal Wolsey from whom he learned the tricks of his trade.
Cromwell changed the course of history by backing Henry's quest for Anne Boleyn and Henry's desire for absolute authority (which all kings and queens since, including Queen Elizabeth II subscribe to. He was a covert Protestant who protected other militant Protestants from Thomas More. His main goal was to help the common people which he thought could be achieved by destroying the Catholic clergy whom he despised and he wanted more limits on the power of the aristocracy, who despised him. He was also an administrative genius who transformed England from a fiefdom to a nation-state.
Mantel is able to bring all of these themes together by making us privy to Cromwell's every thought and calculation. Wolf Hall is the seat of the Seymour family clan where the goings-on symbolizes what Cromwell despised about the Catholic church.