Take a photo of a barcode or cover
153 reviews for:
Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Changed History
Tracy Borman
4.14 AVERAGE
153 reviews for:
Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Changed History
Tracy Borman
4.14 AVERAGE
tudor history has fascinated me since my childhood. this era is full of complex, compelling figures whose stories and actions are still relevant today. this mother-daughter duo has always fascinated me since i learned of them. getting a more in depth look of their relation pre and post mortem scratched the itch in my brain that never stopped thinking about elizabeth’s perception of anne, her actions, and how it personally affected her life. i’ll definitely be reading more tudor books after this one!
Tracy Borman's Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I is more than a dual biography, and through presentation of in-depth research shows how much Elizabeth I was influenced and tried to preserve her mother's memory. It is not often I learn something new about the time period or Elizabeth I, but Borman always seems to include something new and worth learning in each book.
This is a relatively quick read and provides readers with insight into a historical relationship that is often neglected or ignored. Readers of history or the subject matter will enjoy this different perspective topic.
Thank you Grove Atlantic for the ARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.
This is a relatively quick read and provides readers with insight into a historical relationship that is often neglected or ignored. Readers of history or the subject matter will enjoy this different perspective topic.
Thank you Grove Atlantic for the ARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.
informative
medium-paced
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
I found this very easy and interesting reading as someone who has read a lot of both good and unwieldly Tudor books.
However, I am slightly confused about some things. Borman referred to Mary Boleyn bearing a disabled son that was not suffered to be at court at Anne's request, but this isn't backed up by any source and I can't find any provenance of this.
There was also a lot written about Elizabeth's love for France and following her mother's footsteps and the chapter neglected one of the most important parts - that France was allied with Scotland and had reared Mary Queen of Scots who is then discussed much further on in the book but this is omitted.
I think one thing Borman does really well is paint portraits of Anne and Elizabeth, particularly in terms of their emotions. However, again, she didn't really touch on the fact that Seymour essentially assaulted Elizabeth and rather marked it as the advent of her sexual maturity. I think it is an oversight to omit the tragedy of her relationship with Katherine Parr as that affected her greatly and that she did not want Seymour's affections and was essentially still a child, even if she wasn't one in the eyes of the Tudors.
The chapters on Anne's rise to power were very insightful and it painted a very interesting portrait of her. I also felt for Thomas Boleyn who seemed to cherish his children, losing two in one fell swoop.
However, I am slightly confused about some things. Borman referred to Mary Boleyn bearing a disabled son that was not suffered to be at court at Anne's request, but this isn't backed up by any source and I can't find any provenance of this.
There was also a lot written about Elizabeth's love for France and following her mother's footsteps and the chapter neglected one of the most important parts - that France was allied with Scotland and had reared Mary Queen of Scots who is then discussed much further on in the book but this is omitted.
I think one thing Borman does really well is paint portraits of Anne and Elizabeth, particularly in terms of their emotions. However, again, she didn't really touch on the fact that Seymour essentially assaulted Elizabeth and rather marked it as the advent of her sexual maturity. I think it is an oversight to omit the tragedy of her relationship with Katherine Parr as that affected her greatly and that she did not want Seymour's affections and was essentially still a child, even if she wasn't one in the eyes of the Tudors.
The chapters on Anne's rise to power were very insightful and it painted a very interesting portrait of her. I also felt for Thomas Boleyn who seemed to cherish his children, losing two in one fell swoop.
It might sound strange, but my favourite part of this book was actually how Borman didn't try to make Anne Boleyn a saint. For so long she had been seen as a pure villain. Then the pendulum swung too far in the other direction (in my opinion) and she was portrayed as a guiltless saint. But Borman puts the truth somewhere in the middle. And I feel like time is finally ripe for this view of Anne. For her to actually be a person, and not a caricature of one. I really enjoy Borman's writing and I continue to go back to her works time and time again and this one was no exception.I don't really know if this was suppose to be a compare and contrast type book or just a book centering around what they would have most likely admired about each other.I tended to lean towards the latter though. What I found most compelling about this book was the relationship beetween the two of them and all the little hints of Elizabeth's appreciation for a mother that she didn't have the pleasure to really know and cherish. The events decribed both delighted me and upset me, I think the author did a great job at portraying the court intrigue and all the political issues. I enjoyed this book and learned a number of things that I hadn't known previously. This is a must read for Tudor history fans.
Turns out that women are complex!
(Keep Wikipedia close by when you read this one.)
(Keep Wikipedia close by when you read this one.)
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
reflective
fast-paced
informative
medium-paced
My favorite thing about Tracy Borman is how she can explore a historical topic as popular as Tudor England and keep it from feeling dry and rehashed, over and over again. The dynamic between Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I is very interesting, and despite the fact that they were in each others lives for such a short amount of time, it seems like one that really shapes how we view both women. It was very interesting to dive into all the little ways that their relationship shaped both themselves and how it affected the rest of the world, and it humanizes both women in a way that hasn't always been afforded to them due to their reputations (deserved or otherwise). I do wish that there was a little bit more discussion of Anne, but I understand that only so much can be determined from what is left from the time and from the little amount of time they had together.