Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch by Sally Bedell Smith
It
is Queen Elizabeth the II's Diamond Jubilee, her 60 year anniversary as Queen
of England. Authors seem to be rushing to get biographies they have written on
Elizabeth out to coincide with this event. And what an interesting subject she
is. I truly admire her, you have to. This is a person who at thirteen after
meeting Prince Philip was determined to marry him. At age twenty five she
ascended to the throne of Great Britain, the most successful monarchy, and
pledged her life to her people. She has
kept her promise often at the expense of her own life and those around her.
She
is the world’s longest surviving leader and has seen many prime ministers,
heads of states including Presidents of the United States come and go. But what do we know about the real Queen
Elizabeth. We only know what she allows
us to know. This book sets out to
discover the real Elizabeth and I must say I learned a lot about England and
its monarchy. And yes we do see glimpses
of a real person who is intelligent, well read, and has a sense of humor, but
no matter how you cut the cake all we really know about Elizabeth is what she
allows us to know. So while the author tries
to portray the “Real Elizabeth” at the end of the day you are no closer to
the essence of Elizabeth. In fact many
specials on the Queen have been airing on TV with interviews between the
powerhouses of news and people who know her the best such as Prince William,
Prince Harry, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie and you still only gain a
very small insight into the woman who is Elizabeth. It is my belief that whom Elizabeth is will
only become public on her death if ever.
I am in no rush, I prefer her alive.
While
this book is easy to read and full of interesting history, she still just
covers the generally known facts of Queen Elizabeth period. She may think she is saying something new and
different but she is not. Still it is
worth reading if you enjoy books on the British Monarchy. She covers the subject well.
Just a not about the author, she has written books on the Clintons and the Kennedy White House
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