The Milford Public Library’s Reading and Discussion programs continue with variations on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Meetings are held 7:00–9:00 p.m. on the second Monday of September, October, and November, 2009, and January, 2010. Register at the Reference Desk for one or more discussions. Registration begins Monday, July 27. A limited number of books will be available at the Library.

Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Monday, September 14  7:00–9:00 p.m.
Discussion led by Ernest Dolan, Madonna University
Prince Hamlet returns home to find that his father, the king, is dead. His widowed mother, Queen Gertrude, has hastily remarried his father’s brother, Claudius, who has taken the throne. Then Hamlet’s father’s ghost appears, claiming that he was murdered by his brother, who wanted the queen & crown. The ghost urges Hamlet to take revenge. And the tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, begins.

Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard
Monday, October 12  7:00–9:00 p.m.
Discussion led by Sandra Sutherland, Professor of English, retired
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern appear in Hamlet as old friends of the prince from university. They come to Denmark at the request of the king & queen, who are worried about Hamlet’s seeming madness. Stoppard’s satire views Hamlet through the interactions of these two minor characters.

The Dead Fathers’ Club by Matt Haig
Monday, November 9  7:00–9:00 p.m.
Discussion led by Will Horwath, Madonna University
Just after his father’s death, 11-year-old Philip Noble sees his father’s ghost, who tells Philip about the Dead Fathers’ Club—the meeting of ghosts of murdered fathers. The ghost claims that he was murdered by his brother, Philip’s uncle Alan, because Alan wanted the pub Philip’s father owned. Now Philip must avenge his father’s murder by murdering his uncle, or his father will stay a ghost forever.

Gertrude and Claudius by John Updike
Monday, Jaunuary 11   7:00–9:00 p.m.
Discussion led by Cecilia Donohue, Madonna University
Gerutha, daughter of King Rorik of Denmark, is reluctant to marry her father’s choice for her, Horwendil the Jute. But her father’s word is law, so she marries the Jute & bears his son, Amleth. When Rorik dies, Horwendil becomes king, & his duties take him even further from her. She prefers his younger brother, Feng. Updike harks back to the original Danish folk tale for the events before the start of Shakespeare’s play.

8/18/09