Mary, Queen of Scots: Queen Without a Country, France, 1553 (The Royal Diaries) [Hardcover]

Kathryn Lasky (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Series: Royal Diaries

Readers take a step back in time to 16th-century France in this year-long diary of adolescent Mary, Queen of Scots, who has fled from homeland to the Court of her betrothed in France.

Mary is only nine months old when she is crowned Queen of Scotland succeeding her father King James V. Because of political conflicts, she is forced to be separated from her mother and her country from the age of five. For the benefit of forging an alliance with France, the youngster is betrothed to Francis, the son of King Henry ll of France and his wife, the vicious and jealous Queen Catherine de Medici. Mary is sent to France to live in their care until she is old enough for the marriage to take place. It is at their home, the beautiful Chateau St. Germaine, that we first meet the irresistibly charming Mary at 11 years old. Keenly intelligent, she excels academically, and shows a talent for dance, music and poetry. She's an expert horsewoman, skilled at archery and hawking.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Sent from her native Scotland to live in the court of her future father-in-law, King Henry II of France, young Mary, Queen of Scots, spends her time attending balls, hunting and hawking, learning Latin and fractions and music, and playing with her future husband, Francis. In Kathryn Lasky's fictionalized diary of the 11-year-old queen, readers will get a piquant taste of 16th-century life in Europe. Mary is quite aware of her role as the betrothed to France's royal family. Playing chess together one day, Francis comments to Mary, "Did it ever strike you, Mary, that we are not so much children and sons and daughters of parents as we are pieces on a gigantic chessboard called Europe? You are given to me to help checkmate England." As with the other titles in the Royal Diaries series (Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor, etc.), a fact-packed historical note, epilogue, paintings, and family tree provide just enough additional information to whet the appetites of readers for more about the ill-fated queen of Scotland and France. (Ages 9 to 14) --Emilie Coulter

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-8-Mary was only nine months old when she was crowned Queen of Scotland, succeeding her father, King James V. Because of the many political conflicts, she was separated from her mother and her country at the age of five. To forge an alliance with France, she was betrothed to Francis, the son of King Henry II of France and Queen Catherine de Medici. Mary was promptly sent to live in their care until she was old enough for the marriage to take place. That is where this story begins, as she chronicles her life throughout a one-year period. Life in France is filled with dances, playing with her future husband, and hawking, which is Mary's favorite pastime. However, the girl's life is made very difficult by the jealous queen. She finds comfort though in Henry's mistress Diane de Poitier, who is very much the lady and gives Mary strength and inspiration throughout the good and bad times. As with the other titles in the series, this diary is packed with facts that will give readers a wonderful opportunity to learn about a unique heroine from history. A historical note, epilogue, reproductions, and a family tree provide just enough additional information to whet the appetites of readers who may want to continue to explore the background of this ill-fated queen.
Janet Gillen, Great Neck Public Library, NY
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 202 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Inc. (April 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439194040
• ISBN-13: 978-0439194044
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #145,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Hi Readers! Thanks for coming by my author page. I've written all sorts of books - from fantasy about animals to books about science. One of my favorite animal fantasy series, Guardians of Ga'Hoole, is a major motion picture. I liked writing about Ga'Hoole so much that I decided to revisit that world in a new series, Wolves of the Beyond. Visit my website, www.kathrynlasky.com to see a slide show about the real wolves I researched for the series and for the latest update on the Guardians of Ga'Hoole movie. All my best, Kathryn

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great new book from the Royal Diaries series., March 16, 2002

By 

Rebecca Herman (USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mary, Queen of Scots: Queen Without a Country, France, 1553 (The Royal Diaries) (Hardcover)

Mary became Queen of Scotland when she was just a baby, after the death of her father. But in a time where alliances among the powerful nations of Europe are important, Mary is sent away from her home at age five to live in the court of King Henry II of France, where she will be educated and live as one of the family until she old enough to marry Henry's son, Francis. The year is 1553, and Mary is eleven. She longs for her homeland, and for her mother, but is good friends with nine-year-old Francis and the other royal children. In her diary, Mary describes her daily life over one year. She may be a queen, but in many ways Mary is just like any eleven-year-old girl, enjoying fun and games. but at the same time longing to return to her home and mother. I really enjoyed this wonderful new Royal Diaries book, and I recommend it to all fans of the series.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great Royal Diary, March 18, 2002

By 

hiphopgirl_1000 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mary, Queen of Scots: Queen Without a Country, France, 1553 (The Royal Diaries) (Hardcover)

11-year-old Mary was only nine months old when she was crowned Queen of Scotland, succeeding her father. However because of many conflicts she is separated from her mother and Scotland to live with the French. To forge an alliance with France, she is bethroled to Francis, the son of King Henry II. Mary is sent then to France to live with her new "parents" King Henry II and his vicious and jealous Queen Catherine de Medici. It is there that Mary begins her chronicle of her journal. Life there in France is pretty much every day life for Mary. She enjoys going to dances, and playing with her future husband Francis. But she loves hawking the best. However the charming Mary's life is made very difficult by the vicious jealous Queen Catherine de Medici. She finds confort though in Henry's mistress Diane de Poitier who was quite the lady and gave Mary strength and inspiration through good and bad times.

This was another ideal great Royal Diary. Like any other Royal Diary it had a part that explained the real history of Mary and it was sad to learn of her tragic ending. Like Francis said he and Mary were really chess pieces on a big chess board and a wrong move could ruin things.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mary, Queen of Scots: Queen Without a Country, April 1, 2002

By 

SJ "ssjoshi101" (IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mary, Queen of Scots: Queen Without a Country, France, 1553 (The Royal Diaries) (Hardcover)

Although she is living in France, Mary, Queen of Scots, is extremely patriotic towards Scotland and longs to return to the country of her birth. Her four best friends and ladies-in-waiting, all named Mary, are all as passionately Scottish as she is.

This book is the story of Mary's life at the French court. She reflects on her impending marriage to the French Dauphin (crown prince) Francis, who is one of her best friends. However, Mary despises his mother, Queen Catherine de Medici, and Catherine's henchmen. She admires the French king, Henry II, and his mistress, Diane de Poitiers (somewhat excessively). The book is entertaining, and the characters are lively and realistic (but sometimes one-dimensional, like Diane de Poitiers and Catherine de Medici).