Hilary Mantel Books In Order

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Hilary Mary Dame Mantel was a renowned writer known for her diverse works that spanned personal memoirs, short stories, essays, and historical fiction. Mantel was born on July 6, 1952, in Glossop, a marketplace within the Borough of High Peak, located in Derbyshire, a county in the East Midlands of England. Sadly, she passed away on September 20, 2022.

During her lifetime, Mantel was twice awarded the Booker Prize, an annual literary award given to the best original novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom. Her first Booker Prize was awarded in 2009 after the publication of her novel “Wolf Hall.” This historical fiction, based on the life of Thomas Cromwell and his rise to power during the reign of Henry VIII, was met with widespread acclaim.

Cromwell was a powerful minister who served in King Henry VIII’s court, and his compelling story continued in Mantel’s second novel, “Bringing Up the Bodies,” which was published in 2012. This book, which garnered Mantel her second Booker Prize, continued the tale of Thomas Cromwell’s rise and eventual fall. With these two awards, Mantel became the first woman to win the Booker Prize twice.

Mantel spent her early life in Glossop, the eldest of three children born to Margaret (nee Foster) and Henry Thompson. Both of her parents were of Irish descent and born in England. After her parents separated, Mantel’s mother married Jack Mantel, and Hilary adopted her stepfather’s surname.

Following the family’s move to Cheshire, a county in the North West region of England, Mantel explored her family background, a journey that inspired her personal memoir “Giving Up the Ghost,” published in 2003. It is in this memoir that Mantel reveals the loss of her religious faith at the age of twelve, a pivotal moment in her life.

Mantel attended Harrytown Convent in Romiley, Cheshire. In 1970, she began studying Law at the London School of Economics, and a year later, she married Gerald McEwen, a geologist. Mantel subsequently transferred to the University of Sheffield, a research university in Sheffield City, South Yorkshire, where she graduated in 1973 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Jurisprudence.

After graduation, Mantel worked in the Social Works Department of a geriatric hospital before moving to the stores department as a sales assistant. During this time, she began her writing career, and her first novel, “A Place of Greater Safety,” focused on the French Revolution.

In 1977, Mantel and her husband relocated to Botswana, where they lived for five years before moving to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, for another four years. Her experiences in Saudi Arabia inspired her to write a personal memoir, “Someone to Disturb,” which was published in the London Review of Books.

During her twenties, Mantel battled a painful illness that led to misdiagnosis and treatment for psychiatric illness. She eventually discovered she had been suffering from severe endometriosis, a condition where cells that usually grow inside the uterus start growing outside it. After several surgeries, Mantel was unable to have children, which greatly affected her life. Despite the challenges, she became a patron and advocate for the “Endometriosis SHE Trust,” educating women about endometriosis and prevention methods.

Her return to England saw the publication of her novel “Every Day is Mother’s Day” in 1985, and its sequel, “Vacant Possession,” a year later. Between 1987 and 1991, she served as the film critic for The Spectator. She was also a reviewer for various magazines and newspapers in Britain and the US.

Apart from the Booker Prizes, Mantel’s works earned her multiple accolades, including the “Sunday Express Book of the Year” award for “A Place of Greater Safety” in 1992, and the “Hawthornden Prize” for “An Experiment in Love” in 1996.