Review: The Constant Princess

This is the story, as told by Philippa Gregory, of Katherine of Aragon, Spanish princess, Queen of England. She was betrothed to Arthur, Prince of Wales at just four years old and grew up knowing she was destined to be Queen of England. As he lays dying, she promises Arthur to become Queen even without him. The only way to do this is to lie, and claim that her marriage to Arthur was never consummated, and to marry his brother Harry. After years of waiting, she finally fulfills her deathbed promise to Arthur and marries the new king Henry VIII to become Queen. In the end, though, of course, Henry will betray her for Anne Boleyn.

The Constant Princess is Gregory’s fourth (of five) books about the Tudor family of England. This book takes place primarily before the events of her first and best known Tudor book, The Other Boleyn Girl.

In general, I thought this book was good. Katherine is frequently a secondary character to the story of Henry and his wives, but in her youth she was as compelling as any of the other Tudor women.  I especially liked the way Gregory interspersed the third-person narrative with the Katherine's first person point of view; it was an excellent narrative device that allowed us to see both the outsider's point of view and Katherine's inner thoughts.

Unfortunately, I can't help but compare The Constant Princess to The Other Boleyn Girl, which makes Princess seem a little dull in comparison. This is probably partly because The Other Boleyn Girl was new for me, as it was one of the first historical fiction books I read set in this era (I have since gone on to read lots). But mostly I think Princess fell down a bit in comparison for me because its pace is slower. While Gregory focused the book on incidents throughout Katherine's life, there are stretches where not much really happens, as all the players are just waiting for someone to make a move. Princess is contemplative book, whereas The Other Boleyn Girl is more intense. Now that I think about it, though, this is a pretty apt comparison of the heroines of each of these books, Katherine and Anne Boleyn, too!

Altogether, though, The Constant Princess is a worthwhile companion to Gregory's other Tudor books. Fans of her writing, or historical fiction, will enjoy. And since this book stands on its own very well, those who haven't read The Other Boleyn Girl will be able to jump right in and enjoy.

Buy The Constant Princess on Amazon.

Preview: Cleopatra

This week's Newsweek arrived yesterday, with a review of a new book, Cleopatra: The Last Queen of Egypt by Joyce Tyldesley. Tyldesley is a respected Egyptologist with a long list of credentials to her name. Cleopatra is a look at the history behind the myth, and it sounds great.

Cleopatra has fascinated me for a long time. I read The Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George years ago and absolutely loved it. (You can read an excerpt on George's website here.) George is a great writer and the historical research she pours into this book shines through, especially in the little details that make the book.

Buy Cleopatra: the Last Queen of Egypt on Amazon.

Buy The Memoirs of Cleopatra: A Novel on Amazon.

Preview: Museum of Human Beings

My newest LibraryThing Early Reviewers book arrived this weekend. It is Museum of Human Beings by Colin Sargent. Since I am a little busy right now (see my earlier post about what I should be doing), it will probably take me a little while to read and review it. It looks really interesting, though.

The Publisher's description on Amazon:

From deprivation in the wilderness to the lavish courts of European nobility, this poignant historical novel explores the life and quest of Jean-Baptiste Charbonneau, the son of Sacagawea. After the famed Lewis and Clark expedition and the death of his mother, Jean-Baptiste was brought up as Clark's foster son. He was eventually paraded throughout Europe as a curiosity from the wilds of America, labeled as a half gentleman and half animal, entertaining nobility as a concert pianist. Jean-Baptiste returns to North America with a burning desire to create his own place in the New World. In doing so he returns to the heart of the American wilderness on an epic quest for ultimate identity that brings sacrifice, loss, and the distant promise of redemption.

While it won't be out until November, you can pre-order Museum of Human Beings at Amazon now.

More on Loving Frank

I found a good little article about Mamah Borthwick and Nancy Horan's book Loving Frank (see my review here). Part review, part commentary, I thought it was worth pointing out:

http://lastexitmag.com/article/the-mistress-of-taliesin


I think its interesting how much more to this story there is; I will be interested to see if Horan writes a sequel. On the other hand, there are so many other interesting women in history that deserve a second look, perhaps Horan should turn her talents towards one of them.

Book Review: Loving Frank

Loving Frank: A Novel by Nancy Horan

I thought this was a very good book about someone I knew very little about, Mamah Borthwick. As someone who has studied architectural history, I knew the bare bones of the story, so I knew the ending, but that was all I knew about this remarkable woman. Very interesting subject material. And it was nice to see a side of FLW that wasn't so... Fountainhead. (And by that, I mean a look at FLW that is not hero worship but an examination of the actual person beneath the persona.)

As a side note, I was impressed, too, by how closely (it seems) the author kept to the facts of the story. I enjoy historical fiction, but it annoys me when an author takes too many liberties with the historical record. Good show to Nancy Horan for telling a story well and telling it how it (probably) happened.