Werewolf Hamlet

By: Kerry Madden-Lunsford

Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray

Humor, heart, and Shakespeare abound in this middle-grade novel about Angus, a ten-year-old theater fanatic, his struggling family, and his changing relationship with big brother Liam.

Perfect for fans of books that handle difficult subjects and family dynamics in a sensitive way, like Better Nate Than Ever and Rule of Threes.

Ten-year-old Angus is unique. He quotes Shakespeare and wants to stage a Werewolf Hamlet play for his fifth grade legacy project. Angus's seventeen-year-old brother, Liam, is like a werewolf now—Angus never knows if he'll be nice or mean or when he'll sneak out to get drunk or worse.

Meanwhile, tension continues to build for Liam's family in Los Angeles. Mom and Dad are going to default on the mortgage. Older sister Hannah is fed up and ready to move herself to Maine, and little sister Sidney doesn't really get what's happening. Then Liam goes missing, and Angus decides he has to find him.

A realistic, heartfelt look at the complexities of family relationships and struggles. Along with Angus's lovable charm, sense of humor, and desire to stage his original play, Werewolf Hamlet is sure to win its audience—on and off the page—over.

©2025 Kerry Madden-Lunsford (P)2025 Tantor Media

Great story, well told

A wonderful family story set in Hollywood of a few decades ago. It’s read with incredible clarity, and a range of personas, bringing the action into vivid reality. I strongly recommend this book! The characters are a believable family with financial and personal struggles tempered by their passions and dreams. The protagonist is Angus, a sensitive young boy living in the shadow of his talented older brother— a brother who is now going through his own troubled teenaged transition. The family’s strained money problems distract parents who wrangle dreams and discipline in raising their gifted children. The narrative is about Angus’ desire, thwarted at every turn, to produce a play for a school project that recasts Hamlet as a werewolf. The chapters are interspersed with vignettes of remembered conversations between the brothers. The reader’s voice taps into the fraught tension and vulnerability between the brothers.