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    A Wounded Name
    A Wounded Name
    A Wounded Name
    Audiobook12 hours

    A Wounded Name

    Written by Dot Hutchison

    Narrated by Liz Pearce

    3/5

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    About this audiobook

    Publisher Marketing: Ophelia Castellan will never be just another girl at Elsinore Academy. Seeing ghosts is not a skill prized in future society wives. Even when she takes her pills, the bean sidhe beckon, reminding her of a promise to her dead mother. Now, in the wake of the Headmaster's sudden death, the whole academy is in turmoil, and Ophelia can no longer ignore the fae. Especially once she starts seeing the Headmaster's ghosts two of them on the school grounds. Her only confidante is Dane, the Headmaster's grieving son. Yet even as she gives more of herself to him, Dane spirals toward a tragic fate dragging Ophelia, and the rest of Elsinore, with him. You know how this story ends. Yet even in the face of certain death, Ophelia has a choice to make and a promise to keep.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateOct 25, 2013
    ISBN9781470391102
    Author

    Dot Hutchison

    Dot Hutchison is the author of the Collector series (The Butterfly Garden, The Roses of May, The Summer Children, and The Vanishing Season) as well as A Wounded Name, a young adult novel based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Hutchison loves thunderstorms, mythology, history, and movies that can and should be watched on repeat. She has a background in theater, Renaissance-festival living chessboards, and free falls. She likes to think that Saint George regretted killing that dragon for the rest of his days. For more information on her current projects, visit www.dothutchison.com.

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    Reviews for A Wounded Name

    3/5

    28 ratings10 reviews

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    • 5/5
      As a lifelong devotee of Shakespeare, I approached "A Wounded Name" with a certain amount of trepidation. I personally regard "Hamlet" as the greatest story in the English language (outside the King James Bible). So, approaching a "young adult" novelization, written from Ophelia's standpoint, worried me a little. But, having read Dot Hutchison's "Collector" series, I figured that if anyone could pull this off, she might be the one. I was right.I had my doubts in the early chapters, however. "Hamlet" has been "updated" in certain stage and cinema productions past all recognition, e.g., the vapid film that presented the slain king as CEO of "Denmark Corporation." Some would say that "A Wounded Name" is even worse, presenting the elder Hamlet as the headmaster of a prestigious private school. (On reflection, I would suggest that this is arguably a canny stroke in a novel aimed at the young adult market.) I was repeatedly jarred and slightly irritated by such things as motorcycles and cell phones, but these do not distort or dilute the story or the great soliloquies. Ms. Hutchison has done such a good job that these are minor quibbles. And, because "Elsinore Academy" is in a remote area, we are not subjected to such horrors as Internet addiction and raves. The students at Elsinore are not likely to be found snorting lines at a NYC nightclub.What mostly dismayed me was Ophelia's constant reference to, and interaction with, the spirits and "fae folk" that inhabited her world. Witches and water sprites and cities beneath the waves . . . what kind of cornball, "Twilight"-style crap is this???Then I remembered, and blushed at my own impatience. This was exactly the world that William Shakespeare lived in and wrote about, and Ms. Hutchinson was simply being faithful to it. A pivotal character in "Hamlet" is a ghost. Macbeth had his dealings with three sisters who were very weird indeed, and as for "The Tempest . . ." In any case, Ophelia is not a starry-eyed mystic in this book: she's also a young girl who has been prescribed psychotropic pills . . . and forgets to take them.Is Ophelia a believable character in this novel? Yes. Is she a sympathetic character? Opinions will differ: I've always preferred Portia. But, whoever Ophelia was, "A Wounded Name" represents her honorably. And the secondary characters — Polonius, Laertes, good old Horatio, and all the rest — are portrayed clearly and (when possible) affectionately. And, without spoiling the story, I'll point out a very bold stroke on Ms. Hutchison's part: Have you ever wondered where Ophelia's mother was?Highly recommended.
    • 1/5
      I unfortantly got about 50% into this and DNF it, the narrator of this book was sufferable, and I could not get into it at all... I tried for weeks to focus and get into the story, but my mind keep wandering and seeing the average rating of this story I can see I was not alone in that.
    • 2/5
      I won a copy of the audiobook here on Librarything. It took me a very long time to get into the audio and finally gave up half way through. I found that the audio made me drowsy and was no longer interested in it. It was a sad decision to make because the narrator has a beautiful voice. The retelling of Hamlet had great appeal to me initially and I started off really enjoying the story. This rating is purely for the audiobook as I intend on trying reading the book before I can give my full opinion on the writing. The feel of the audio was very melancholy, the narrator has a very soft voice and there are very few instances in the story where the volume differs from narration. There are scandalous events that occur in the story but as is, comes off rather flat and woebegone feel instead of outrageous drama filled events. As I have never read the original Hamlet I cannot say on whether this version is a good comparison or not. My final thoughts are that I am going to give this book a second chance, but donating the audiobook. It was just too depressing to think of having to push the play button about half way in. I couldn't make it.
    • 1/5
      I decided to just give up on this audiobook, I listened to the first 2 discs or so and I just could not bring myself to finish it. I tried again the other day to listen to it and just could not get into it. I originally requested this book thinking it would be a modern retelling, I was sadly disappointed.A Wounded Name is a retelling of a Shakespearean Classic, Hamlet. Told from the point of view of Ophelia, the reader begins the book with mental illness and death and it does not get any better from there. The time period the book is set in is confusing, or at least it was to me, they speak like it should be Shakespearean, but there is a note about cell phones and jeans, so right of the bat I felt like I was going crazy.On top of being confused about the setting, the relationships all seemed creepy to me, there was a lot of verbal abuse and I also felt like the progression of the tale was leading to sexual abuse as well (maybe not- I didn't make it that far).The beginning of the story was about grief and depression and that is all that I could feel while reading it. This may be a good thing, that the author creates those intense awful feelings, but for me it made me want to stop listening and move on. I really wanted to enjoy this one too.
    • 1/5
      A Wounded Name by Dot Hutchinson is a retelling of Shakespeare's Hamlet. It's set in an exclusive boarding school and is told from Ophelia's point of view. It's a stretch but I have enjoyed many other Hamlet inspired novels and thought this one had potential.The copy I read was an audio provided by Recorded Books via LibraryThing. I think most of my negative reaction stems from the performance. The narrator uses an overly earnest, semi-British accent that my husband calls a "Blue Peter voice." It's an exaggerated performance with overdone enunciation.But it's not just the performance. Some of the responsibility rides on the text itself. First and foremost, the pacing is SLOW. Yes, Shakespeare leaves enough plot holes to drive a truck through, but A Wounded Name in its attempt to fill them up, manages to make every single scene drag (even with hitting fast forward). The opening funeral of Hamlet Sr., for example, takes the entire first disc (roughly 75 agonizing minutes).
    • 5/5
      When I heard about this retelling of Hamlet set in a semi-modern private high school and told from the point of view of Ophelia, I was worried that it would be like the dubious graphic novel retellings I've seen of other classic literature.This, however, is different. It's more like a fairy tale retelling, haunting and odd, where the fairies are as terrifying as they are magical. It's a picture of madness and depression told with a modern psychology eye but in almost classical prose. I though the audiobook narrator did an excellent job of rendering Ophelia, mad and sane at once, filled with the passions of a teenager who you know is never going to see the end of the story.It's a beautiful rendering of the classical tale from another perspective, shining light into different smaller tragedies within the whole. It's not an easy thing to read, watching the characters spiral into oblivion, but it's definitely a unique take on the tragedy.Note: this book is likely very triggering for depression, self-harm, suicide -- some of it is as one might expect from the source, some goes beyond.
    • 5/5
      I got a finished copy of this book to review through the Amazon Vine program. I love Hamlet (and Shakespeare in general) and have read a couple retellings of this play. This was by far the best one of the bunch. The writing style is lyrical and beautiful and I absolutely loved it.Ophelia is the daughter the main administrator at a boarding school. For generations the boarding school has been run by the Hamlet family, but the death of the Headmaster has turned the school on it’s head. One of the most affected people is the son of the Headmaster, Dane, he is beside himself because of his father’s death. When Dane’s uncle announces that he will marry Dane’s mother, Dane is incredibly distraught and seeks solace in Ophelia’s company. However Ophelia has issues of her own, she can see ghosts and fae and has been heavily medicated for a long time to shut down this ability.This was an absolutely beautiful and tragic retelling of Hamlet. I really enjoyed it, the writing is lyrical and does an excellent job of echoing the original play. Many famous parts of the play are quoted word through word throughout and I enjoyed that.At first it was hard to figure out the era the book was set in. The language the story is told in is very lyrical, flowery, and a bit archaic. The men are very protective of the girls, and the school is raising girls to be society wives so they aren’t allowed to take the same classes as the boys. Additionally Ophelia is always in dresses. However, there are things like cell phones, antidepressants, birth control pills, etc mentioned in the book. So I finally deduced that this book is set in modern times. Ophelia however, is not necessarily living in the same world as everyone else. She is somewhat isolated in the boarding school, she sees faeries, and is heavily medicated..which makes her somewhat dissociated and passive. I think the archaic language the story was told in really shows how very dislocated from the rest of the world Ophelia is, it also does an excellent job of echoing Hamlet...while being easier to read and grasp than Hamlet.I know other readers have complained about the archaic language and writing style, but I absolutely loved it. I thought it was cleverly done. It conveys the dreaminess of Ophelia’s existence while also exposing readers to a beautiful writing style conveys the feeling of Shakespeare without being as hard to read as Shakespeare is.Ophelia is such an interesting character and I loved that this story is told from her point of view. Her love and need for Dane is so genuine, yet so wrong. Both Ophelia and Dane dance back and forth over the line of insanity and this was incredibly well done in this book. I loved hearing from her point of view why she supported Dane and why she let him use and abuse her so. Her and Dane don’t have a healthy relationship and it was interesting to see that admitted and explored.I was also impressed with how similar the boarding school situation was to a kingdom, a very traditional and elite boarding school was actually an excellent way to tell this story. I was a bit skeptical at first, but it all worked beautifully.There is some magic and paranormal elements to the story as well. Ophelia’s mom is a water faerie, a morgan, and Ophelia also sees ghosts. This all ties into the story very well and fills out Ophelia’s background nicely. I enjoyed these additional elements to the story and thought they added a lot to it.This is a tragedy folks, there is no happy ending. The whole book you just feel the wrongness building and are waiting for it all to explode. Hutchinson does an excellent job building this tension throughout the story. Even though I knew how the story would end I had trouble putting the book down.Overall I really really loved this book. As I said...I have read other Hamlet retellings, even from Ophelia’s point of view, and did not enjoy them. This book however was absolutely spot on. It echoes Hamlet very well and even has some quotations and dialogue form the original play. The writing style is absolutely beautiful and does an excellent job of echoing Hamlet while being more accessible. I loved how the archaic language in a modern setting shows you how removed Ophelia is from the outside world. I just pretty much loved everything about this book! I will definitely be keeping an eye out for Hutchinson’s future works.
    • 1/5
      I couldn't finish listening to the audio CD of A Wounded Name I received from LibraryThing. Perhaps the experience of reading the book might have been different, but I dreaded driving in my car for a week before finally allowing this story to not be for me. I think I will pass it on to a Shakespeare teacher that I know in hopes that she will enjoy this story more than I did.
    • 3/5
      I received an audio CD copy of A Wounded Name through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program. A Wounded Name is a retelling of Shakespeare's Hamlet through Ophelia's point of view which sounds like an interesting premise, however, this is an example of a great idea but poor execution. The book starts with Ophelia speaking of the keening of the Ban Sidhe and how her father forces her to take medicine so she doesn't hear the voices. The writer does a great job of staying true to the original story while adding a modern element to the tale, however, it was almost if it was too close to the original story without allowing her own style and spin on the story to shine though. I think the best retelling's remain true to the original but add a little something extra which makes the writer's version unique. I feel this book would have been much more interesting if the author had given more background on the tumultuous relationship between her parents as well as her own near death experience that was caused by her mother. Instead, pages are devoted to the troubling and abusive relationship between she and Dane(Hamlet) in which the reader is subjected to constant details about bruising, bones and blood. The book could have been so much better with a bit of editing and less of Shakespeare's style and more of the author's voice. That being said I thought the narration was well done and there were some beautifully written passages within the book. 2.5 stars.
    • 1/5

      This and other reviews can be found on Reading Between Classes

      Cover Impressions: Very pretty. I love how she is leaping into the water, rather than falling as is common in a lot of YA covers.

      The Gist: A re-telling of Shakespeare's Hamlet through the eyes of Ophelia.

      Review:I have been seriously procrastinating on writing this review. THis is a direct result of the annoyance I felt while reading this book. I chose A Wounded Name as one of the books to read while I was staying with my parents, preparing for my wedding. I was hoping for a book to drag me away and give me a moment of to of respite from the insanity of wedding planning. However, A Wounded Name ended up being the ONLY book I read because reading another page was the LAST thing that I wanted to do. Bring on the crazy relatives, just don't make me read any more of Ophelia's tortured world!

      A Wounded Name has the distinction of being the only book I can recall reading in which I hated ALL of the characters. Every. Single. One. I realize that this follows the plot of Hamlet pretty damn closely, but I could have done with some characterization to at least make one of two people appealing. Dane is an ass. Ophelia has no spine whatsoever. Her brother and father are duel control freaks and, frankly, the character the reader is meant to truly hate, is the only one who behaves decently throughout the whole book!

      The relationships in this novel are creepy at best, downright scary at worst. Ophelia appears to have feelings for Dane but never takes any control and allows herself to be lead wherever he wishes. Where he wishes, also tends to include physical abuse, which she endures in order to show her love. THE FUCK OPHELIA??? She is constantly hiding the bruises, engaging in dangerous activities at his behest and making excuses for his actions. Speaking of bruises - the author is OBSESSED! Nearly every page mentions actual bruises, past bruises, bruise colored objects and on and on and on. It has gotten to the point where I will never again be able to read that word without cringing inwardly.

      Ophelia's relationship with her father and brother is not much more healthy than that with Dane. Both men are incredibly controlling and treat Ophelia like an invalid. The family also seems to be distant and uncaring, while overly familiar with each other's private lives. At one point, Ophelia describes her brother's sexual activities in a way that made me want to call child services.

      To compound on the horrible characters, there was a great deal of confusion about the time frame. There are modern conveniences, such as cell phones, but antiquated ideas about women's roles. The females are the school are raised to be obedient wives and the administration fights against any suggestion that they should change. The language also got more and more annoying as the book went on. I was looking for a re-telling of a Shakespearean masterpiece, but that doesn't mean I wanted to read someone else's version of Shakespearean language. Every time the teens started speaking this way, it immediately jolted me from the story and made me question the author's choices.

      A Wounded Name is merely a butchered classic that fell far short of expectations. I do not think I will be anxiously awaiting any more of Hutchison's books.

      Teaching/Parental Notes:

      Age: 16 and up
      Sex: Kissing, Sex among teenagers
      Violence: Physical Abuse, Gunplay, Poisoning
      Inappropriate Language: Whore, Prick, Bastard, Crude language regarding sex and masturbation
      Substance Use/Abuse: Underage Drinking, Smoking