Maggie O’Farrell’s last novel, “Hamnet,” the fictional story of William Shakespeare’s son who died at age 11, was an international best-seller.

Her new novel, “The Marriage Portrait” also delves into history. O’Farrell was struck by Robert Browning’s poem, “My Last Duchess,” which itself was inspired by a painting of a young Italian woman who died in 1561, at the age of 16, just a year after she was married to the Duke of Ferrara. But did she die? Or was she poisoned?

“The Marriage Portrait” reminded us of Lauren Groff’s 2021 hit, “Matrix,” set in medieval France. So for this week’s deep track, we thought we’d bring you the Talking Volumes interview MPR News host Kerri Miller did with Groff on the stage of the Fitzgerald Theater last year, where Groff describes the history, the art and the music that inspired her writing.

Guest:

• Lauren Groff is the author of six books. “Matrix” is her most recent, released in 2021.

To listen to the full conversation you can use the audio player above.

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