Reading on Topic: The Royals

Back in June of 1982 I remember driving to swimming lessons and listening to a radio news report that the Princess of Wales had gone into labor and had been admitted to the hospital.  I anxiously awaited the news of the birth of Prince William and from that day on I scoured the newspapers every day for news of the British Royal Family, gluing each article into the numerous scrapbooks I eventually amassed. 

I no longer create scrapbooks about the royals, but I am still a royal watcher and love reading anything I can about them.

The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor - the Truth and the Turmoil by Tina Brown was a fantastic read earlier this year.  I have a firm base of royal knowledge, but admit to not being as up on the current royal events as I once was.  This book told me things I already knew while adding new information. I loved hearing more of the current royal saga and hope someday in the future Brown will have another installment.

I've got shelves of books on the royal family, most are ones I bought in the 1980s and 90s when beautiful coffee table books were published routinely.  

Here is a list of some rather new-ish books for your royal family deep dive:

1.  The Woman Before Wallis by Bryn Turnbull -a fictionalized version of the woman who was in love with Prince Edward before he married Wallis Simpson and abdicated the throne.

2. On Royals: A Very Polite Inquiry Into Some Strangely Related Families by Jeremy Paxman - a look at the royal family and how ancient tradition blends with the modern world

3. Ninety-Nine Glimpses of Princess Margaret by Craig Brown - a biography of Princess Margaret using interviews, dreams, parallel lives, diaries, announcements, lists, catalogues and essays to help uncover the life of Margaret who was known for being both glamorous and unhappy.

4. The Little Princesses: The Story of the Queen's Childhood by Her Nanny, Marion Crawford- Crawford shares her account of the time she spent caring for Elizabeth and Margaret. Writing this memoir caused her to be ostracized by the royal family for the rest of her life.

5.  The Gown by Jennifer Robson - this is a novel of the Royal Wedding, a fictionalized account of the making of Princess Elizabeth's dress as she prepared to marry Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten.  

6.  Battle of Brothers by Robert Lacey - Lacey has been watching and writing about the royals since the 1980s and this book looks inside William and Harry's relationship. The copyright of this book is 2020, leaving room for the many things that have happened in the past two years to be written about.

7.  Elizabeth and Margaret: the Intimate World of Windsor Sisters by Andrew Morton - Morton has written other books on the royals, but this one focuses in on Elizabeth and Margaret providing anecdotes of their childhood through adulthood.

8.  HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style by Elizabeth Holmes- beautiful photos accompany the text that focuses on the fashion of Elizabeth II, Diana, Catherine, and Meghan

9.  The Lady Di Look Book by Eloise Moran - Another book filled with beautiful photographs showcasing the many different outfits, hats, and looks that Diana took on over the years.  

10.  William and Catherine by David Elliot Cohen - this is the traditional coffee table book about William and Kate's wedding, filled with gorgeous photographs.

I'm also anxiously awaiting two new books set to be published in the next few months:

I've watched coverage of Queen Elizabeth II's funeral and am already gearing up for the many new books that will soon be published chronicling this momentous event.