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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
This is an excellent example of a recent trend in books about royals - instead of a strict biography, it’s a compilation of smaller vignettes (though a LOT of vignettes in this case). For similar formats, see this author’s book about Princess Margaret and Gareth Russell’s book about the Queen Mother. This is a good format if you feel like already know a lot about the subject and don’t want to read a straight bio.
This book in particular contains stories from “around” the Queen. There could have been fewer chapters about poets and the poet laureate, but otherwise I found the rest of the content interesting.
Also, this is such a beautiful book cover-wise, especially the inside covers.
This book in particular contains stories from “around” the Queen. There could have been fewer chapters about poets and the poet laureate, but otherwise I found the rest of the content interesting.
Also, this is such a beautiful book cover-wise, especially the inside covers.
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
An enjoyable, informative read. I quite liked the randomness of the chapters but I can appreciate other readers would prefer a more structured approach. Also, it is a long read and I'm not convinced that it needed to be. Overall I enjoyed this but it won't be to everyone's liking.
slow-paced
informative
reflective
fast-paced
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Unique concept for a biography but I think as an American not having grown up in the UK it just wasn’t that interesting. Too many people, places, situations, and aristocracy that don’t resonate as an outsider.
informative
slow-paced
⭐️ Stars: 2.25
🚥 Pace: Slow
✍🏻 Review: Q: A Voyage Around the Queen somehow made a book about one of the most fascinating women in history an absolute chore to get through. Wouldn’t recommend — I’m sure there are much better biographies out there. The cute cover got me.
informative
A weird book for me to pick up, especially after Say Nothing, but I really enjoyed this. An old copy of the Literary Review was in my parents' AirBnB while they were staying in Sydney, and so I ended up reading about this book, and its intriguing usage of secondary sources, to create, not a staid portrait of reliably dull monarch, but a panorama of British mania.
I imagine the Brits will never get rid of the monarchy, because then they would have no object for their veneration and their disdain. I enjoyed Brown's style so much I'm likely to check out the Beatles and Princess Margaret books despite having little interest in either parties. It's not about the people themselves, but how they are received. Top notch biography, and recommended for anyone who's ever watched an episode of the Crown and wondered, "what's wrong with those people?"
I imagine the Brits will never get rid of the monarchy, because then they would have no object for their veneration and their disdain. I enjoyed Brown's style so much I'm likely to check out the Beatles and Princess Margaret books despite having little interest in either parties. It's not about the people themselves, but how they are received. Top notch biography, and recommended for anyone who's ever watched an episode of the Crown and wondered, "what's wrong with those people?"
This was a great look into the impact of the late Queen. Brown does a great job at portraying the Queen through those who interacted with her. I get the sense that we will never truly understand who Elizabeth was as a person, rather we have come to see her as a figurehead.