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503 reviews for:
The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor, the Truth and the Turmoil
Tina Brown
3.86 AVERAGE
503 reviews for:
The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor, the Truth and the Turmoil
Tina Brown
3.86 AVERAGE
I have complicated thoughts on this. I ate this up, it's almost 18 hours of audiobook and I listened to it in a mere 3 days. I don't have that much historical context of the royal family, just the common knowledge I've lived through (aka all the Markle stuff) and then the Crown. I thought the first 75% was great and I'm glad it touched on a bunch of different eras and women. However, I'm giving the final quarter some side eye. Although framed as journalism and thus unbiased, this is definitely biased when it comes to Meghan Markle. A lot of the way her journey to becoming part of the royal family is framed through her background in acting and desire to be an influential celebrity (and her meager success at that until her relationship with Harry). While Brown does eventually start discussing race as a factor, I think it's completely irresponsible to look at any part of this without first considering that...the royal family is extremely racist??? And so was the media. On top of that fact that royal British people are kind of whack and to an American it's even more obvious that...they are rude and racist. Brown tries to make some stuff seem like "well that's just British royalty! They are always like that!" but doesn't stop to wonder...maybe the British royalty should NOT act like that because...it's rude? In the end, Brown does seem to give Markle some credit but chalks it up a bit to "well Meghan probably did experience a culture shock and mayhaps a bit of racism, along with some invasion of privacy, but that's all in a days work in being a royal! It's the price you pay and c'mon, did she really expect a centuries old dynasty to change overnight because she arrived?" In my head I'm just thinking...maybe if a WOC entering your fold means you would need to change everything to make it a safe space for them is a sign you need to actually do that change? But whatever, this isn't a thesis on British royalty. I was fascinated by this book and it made me think a lot about power and women and I can't stop typing!
informative
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
Who doesn't love royal gossip when it's done this well? Brown loads these pages with juicy details and thoughtful character studies. Nearly everyone is criticized with compassion (except for Prince Andrew who is apparently very stupid in addition to being a creep). Though I quibble with Smith's look at Megan Markle. Brown examines Markle's story from the lens of race, but she doesn't effectively acknowledge the impact race would have on the pressure Markle faced ahead of her wedding and the way white people would (over)react to her behavior.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
fast-paced
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
What an incredible and comprehensive history of the modern royal family. As someone who thought they knew a fair amount, Tina Brown’s insight into royal affairs, protocols, and how with the Monarchy history tends to repeat or at least reflect itself, all made me rethink so many things I’d thought I’d known about members of the Royal Family. Especially as an American, this is very informative in its analysis.
informative
medium-paced