In many respects this is an unusual choice of book for me. Non-fiction generally takes a lower place in my pecking order than fiction. And the subject matter isn’t one I would generally go for. But I can never explain the way I’m drawn to some books.
I found this to be a very readable and entertaining account of the lives of two of our royals. It interested me on two levels. As something of a history buff the whole concept of ruling royalty and the monarchy fascinates me. I look back to the almost obsessive desire of people to become king/queen and rule the country. People who killed, schemed and plotted and spent a whole lifetime in some cases preparing their offspring for the role is in stark contrast with how things are today. (I'm thinking here of Margaret Beaufort and Henry VII!)The other thing is I struggle with the concept of somebody being born into that situation and having no choice in the matter. Is the privileged background any compensation for not having a life of freedom? And I guess this is the thrust of the book to examine how Prince Harry and Megan Markle arrived at the situation they are now in.
Without knowing very much about it and just casually gleaning headlines from news reports when their discontent first surfaced I immediately thought of Edward VIII and his abdication so that he could be with the woman that he loved. However on reading this book the situations don’t really have any parallel. This situation is more complex certainly in Prince Harry’s case. Losing his mother at such a relatively young age has clearly caused him much anguish to put it mildly. I found it completely understandable that he should want to live a life away from the spotlight given what happened to his late mother.
And then of course historically royal marriages have always been within the domain of political intrigue, arranged to further cooperation between countries and improve the political situation. Love never entered into it! And the protocols of prospective partners pasts often impacted upon the royal marriages. I’m not gonna mention The Crown because I don’t have Netflix and I’ve never seen it! But I do remember the furor about Princess Margaret and Peter Townsend. How dare you fall in love with somebody who isn’t suitable! Like you have a choice.
Prince Harry fell in love with Megan Markle. A woman of colour and a divorcee. Maybe he learned from lessons of the past but he remained true to his heart and married the woman he loved. And of course she was the target of much media manoeuverings. Of the tabloids and social media. Many accusations as to her intentions.
So this book is really to show Megan and Harry as real people rather than people caught up in the royal family shenanigans. And to try and set the record straight from some of the potential inaccuracies put out there from the media. I think it does that. I found it readable and interesting and I found it engaged my sympathies towards both Prince Harry and Megan Markle. Two people wanting to raise a family out of the spotlight. I don’t see anything wrong with that. But because of the circumstances of birthright to do so becomes an issue.
It's a subject that remains contentious. This book will have its critics as well as its devotees. One has to hope that it's unbiased although I'm not entirely convinced. There are always two sides to every story.
My thanks to HQ stories for a copy of his book.
No comments:
Post a Comment