By Grania Forbes
These books are always full of surprises, not least those of a visual nature.
The current Queen is in her 80s and has always been two generations in front of me, so it was a great surprise to me to see photos of her that showed her to be a stunning young lady.
This effect, quite obviously, is magnified when the subject is her mother, who seems to have been one of the most captivatingly sweet children I think I’ve ever seen.
By William Shawcross
Released in 2002 to commemorate the 50th year of Elizabeth II’s accession to the British throne, this is an impressive-looking book at first glance. Initial impressions count, and those experienced here could not be bettered, the cover minimalist with a greyscale photograph of a highly attractive young monarch, the pages thick, lustrous, and adorned with large and glossy photographs.
I’m a republican at heart, so this choice of book ought to seem strange. Stranger still is that irrespective of my sentiments in this field, I’m a big fan of the Queen, and this book has done nothing to change my take there, save intensify it.
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By Kirsty McLeod
An excellent book, this details the lives of two young brothers but a year apart in age. One is garrulous and confident, the other shy and retiring. They both grew up to be kings of the United Kingdom.
By Micheal De-La-Noy
I can’t get my head around monarchical dynasties. Except for people that are real stand-outs, how are you supposed to remember who is who? How do the French get through so many kings that they can have eighteen with the same name in under a millennium? Do they know anything about the ones that came before the famous ones? (more…)
