Wolf Hall and its sequel, Bring Up the Bodies, received the Booker Prize for Dame Hilary Mantel. Mirror and the Light, the conclusion to the trilogy, was published in 2020 and was an instant number one fiction bestseller.
The double Booker Prize-winning author of the epic Wolf Hall trilogy, Dame Hilary Mantel, has died at the age of 70.
In a statement, her publisher 4th Estate books said, “We are heartbroken by the passing of our beloved author, Dame Hilary Mantel, and our sympathies are with her friends and family, particularly her husband, Gerald.
This is a tragic loss, and we can only be thankful that she left behind such a beautiful collection of work.
The British author born in Derbyshire was awarded the Booker Prize for Wolf Hall and its sequel Bring Up the Bodies.
Mirror and the Light, the conclusion to the trilogy, was published in 2020. In the same year, it was longlisted for the Booker Prize and won the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, which she had previously received for Wolf Hall.
This trilogy, which chronicles the rise and fall of Thomas Cromwell at the court of King Henry VIII, made her a global celebrity.
It has been translated into 41 languages and has sold over five million copies globally.
Mark Rylance played Thomas Cromwell, Damian Lewis played Henry VIII, and Claire Foy played Anne Boleyn in the series, which was directed by Peter Kosminsky.
It won the best drama series at the 2016 Television BAFTAs, while Rylance won the best actor for his portrayal. In the same year, it won the Golden Globe for best miniseries.
HarperCollins, in a tribute, referred to Dame Hilary as “one of the best English novels of this century.”
Her cherished works are regarded as modern masterpieces. She will be missed tremendously.”
Her writing career spanned decades, from the publication of her first novel Every Day Is Mother’s Day in 1985 to her appointment as the cinema critic for the Spectator magazine in 1987 before she began to win literary awards regularly for her works.
Nicholas Pearson, the former publishing director of 4th Estate and Dame Hilary’s longtime editor, disclosed that she had begun composing a new book.
“Only a month ago, I sat with her on a lovely afternoon in Devon while she enthusiastically discussed her new novel.
“It is intolerable that we won’t be able to enjoy her words anymore. We have a body of work that will be read for years to come. We must express gratitude for this. I will miss her, and my thoughts go out to Gerald, her husband.”
J.K. Rowling retweeted a message from 4th Estate Books confirming Mantel’s death, stating, “We’ve lost a genius.”
When Dame Hilary received her first Booker prize, she famously stated that she would spend the money on “sex, drugs, and rock and roll.” The second time she made a joke about rehabilitation.
She was no stranger to controversy and was outspoken on a variety of topics, including the monarchy and Brexit, stating in 2021 that she wished to obtain Irish citizenship, leave the UK, and become “a European again.
In 2013, she infamously stated that Kate Middleton, now the Princess of Wales, was obliged to show herself publicly as a “shop window mannequin” devoid of personality.
In an interview the following year, she recalled having fantasies about the assassination of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, which she eventually turned into short fiction.
She was as outspoken in her desire for the United Kingdom to become a republic, calling the monarchy an “irrational phenomenon.”
In 2012, the author also criticized the Catholic Church, stating that it was no longer “an organization for decent people.”
The author struggled with chronic sickness throughout her life, suffering from a severe form of endometriosis that took years to identify and rendered her sterile.
Bill Hamilton, Dame Hilary’s agent at the literary firm A.M. Heath, stated that it had been a “wonderful honor” to work with her throughout her career and that she will be remembered for “her ability to electrify a live audience.”
Her wit, stylistic audacity, creative ambition, and extraordinary historical knowledge distinguish her as one of the finest novels of our time, according to him.
Hilary’s emails were peppered with witticisms and jokes as she surveyed the world with glee, seized on the lazy or ludicrous, and hammered brutality and prejudice,” he explained.
“She always exuded a faint aura of otherworldliness, as she saw and felt things we mere mortals did not, but when she saw the necessity for conflict, she would charge into battle courageously.
All of this occurred against the backdrop of chronic health issues, which she handled with such fortitude. We will miss her enormously, but she leaves an unparalleled legacy as a guiding beacon for writers and readers. Our sympathies are with her husband, Gerald, and her family and friends.”
