Customer Reviews

Monarch: The Life and Reign of Elizabeth II

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book about the reign of QEII, goes behind the scenes and makes you feel a part of history, all without the tabloid style information that appear in some papers. Mr. Lacey's research is meticulous and his sources are close enough to the monarch that we knew these people witnessed the events first hand.

The book does a very good job of describing the situation that developed at the time of the death of Diana. It was interesting to find out that the queen herself approved of all of the plans for the funeral, many in fact were her idea. While not diminishing the role of Prince Charles in the arrangements, the queen and her staff were largely responsible for that memorable day.

It was also interesting to find out that Diana's sons had distanced themselves from her that summer because of her romance with Dodi. And also that her brother in law Sir Robert Fellowes was not the villian he has often portrayed to be in other books, where his feelings for Diana were concerned.

The history leading up to the accession of QEII is always fascinating and is well handled here in the book. The scenarios surrounding the plans for the coronation and her wedding give a real inside look at the royal family.

After reading this book, I was a little disappointed in some members of the family and staff, liked other even more and found a great respect for the woman herself. While she can be stubborn and dig in when the chips fall against her, she can also quickly see the light and move with the tide. Most particularly in the flag flap at the time of Diana's death.

I give high marks to this book. There is so much interesting history in the book that is can be read again and again and still hold the reader's interest.

On a more picky note, I found several mistakes in the book. On page xi of the Royal Who's Who, Edward the VII is listed as being made Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle in 1911. That would be Edward the VIII, since Edward the VII was already dead in 1911. On page 36, we have a coach careering around an area instead of careening. Lastly on page 151, they have Prince Phillip at 26 in 1946 and on the next page, age 24 in the same year.

Nevertheless, this book should entertain and inform all people who follow the lives of the royal family. There is a nice mix of political fact and the freshness of looking at last behind the palace walls. This book stays in my collection as a wonderful testament to the woman we are all more than a little curious about. Whether she is wrong or right about certain things, she cetainly has staying power.

I've often wondered just what the Queen of England does. With no real governmental power and, seemingly at least, nothing much to do, hers looked (to me on this side of the pond)like a totally useless life.

Lacey's book doesn't answer my questions but it does seem that although she may not have the power of the President of the United States, she wields a power of her own that is just as important to her people. This book, however, focuses more on the person and her life than on her job.

"Lillibet" dreamed of a quiet life with horses and dogs and what she got was life in the fishbowl of royalty with horses, dogs, Parliamentary boxes and public scrutiny. Luxury, yes, but luxury well earned in terms of personal sacrifice. Where others triumph and suffer the "trials and tribulations" of living in quiet peace, Queen Elizabeth experiences much the same under the unforgiving -- and often misunderstanding -- glare of fame. It is not an enviable position.

Robert Lacey has a number of impressive biographies in his repertoire (THE LIFE AND TIMES OF HENRY VIII, ROBERT, EARL OF ESSEX and SIR WALTER RALEIGH, to name a few) and his work is imminently readable. MONARCH, The Life and Reign of Elizabeth II is not only beautifully written and researched, it's downright fascinating in its portrayal of a woman touched by destiny and pride. I can't help but hope he'll follow this by an equally beautifully written and thoroughly researched book on what she does.

Obviously, Robert Lacey is a dedicated biographer. His book is characterized by research, depth, and scope. What's more, he doesn't resort to cheap sensationalism to add a few more chapters. Yet somehow, "Monarch" is still one of those books that doesn't just capture you and leave you gushing about how wonderful it was.

Lacey begins his book by attempting to chronicle the development of the "modern" royal family, beginning with reign of Queen Victoria and providing glimpses into several other monarchs' rule. It would be true to say that these "foundations" help one understand the current queen. Occasionally, this extended history lesson was just plain fascinating, too, imparting nuggets of history that any royal buff delights in.

Unfortunately, the history lessons definitely became too textbook-ish at times, too. Lacey has an extremely unfortunate habit of seeming to bring up every single name, place, and government activity when talking about an event. This leaves the reader with an overly long and dull account of event that could have been summed up much more interestingly.

The same analysis, to a lesser extent, holds true for the queen's own story in this book. At times, Lacey fabulously describes people and events, knows just where to place a well-chosen quote, and makes one want to read about the queen's life forever (as in the opening chapters about the queen's dealings with Diana's funeral). Yet the "bogged-down-in-boring-detail" problem still surfaced in this part (the parts dealing with the Margaret-Townsend affair were dry and too long).

Lacey is certainly to be commended for his obvious knowledge about the queen, and it is also fortunate for readers that he is able to convey his respect for the queen while still offering up intelligent, constructive criticism. If you really must read everything about the British royal family or the queen, this is a solid offering, yet other readers would probably enjoy Carolly Erickson's masterfully written "Lillibet" much more.

I was kind of hoping that Robert Lacey did a follow-up to his earlier biography, Majesty but instead, he seem to rehashed many of the old material from that book while writing a whole new biography. So while this book proves to be an interesting read to those who have not read Majesty, you cannot help but to be disappointed by how the last 20 years of Elizabeth's reign have been written. Its almost appears to be a mini-biography of Princess Diana. I believed this spell out the major weakness in this biography of Elizabeth II. Some of the readers might questioned although others may praised the fact that Lacey did not treat Diana with any sort of adoration that seem to be so typical of many of the current writers.

I thought the book could have better written, in more details and with more insights to Elizabeth's character as she grew older. There's probably not enough information on her husband in this book as well. He's probably more important to Elizabeth's life then Diana could ever be. The author's unwillingness to dig deeper for a more complete biography make this book somewhat of a compromise quality. There's really nothing written about Elizabeth in this book toward her last 20 years of reign that we couldn't pick up already from the mass media. Do we have to wait until after Elizabeth's death to get a decent indepth biography on her life??

Ok, I admit it - I'm a bit of a royalist. I am obviously very fascinated in monarchies and the history of European Royalty, but reading about it has also resulted in a kind of awe and admiration of royals (whether deserved or not...). I start my review with this confession because the one thing I really did not enjoy about this biography of Elizabeth II was Robert Lacey's seeming glee in pointing out (at whatever chance he could) that Elizabeth II has no power and is just a figurehead who must bend to her people unless she wants to see the monarchy be dissolved. It made Elizabeth seem like nothing more than a puppet, which is certainly not how I view her.

I also found that Lacey wrote not so much about Elizabeth but more about the people who surround her and came before her - using her relatives and servants to paint the picture of this enigmatic woman. I found "The Queen" starring Helen Mirren to be more informative about Elizabeth the woman and leader than this book. Lacey spends the first few chapters giving brief bios of Elizabeth's predecessors starting with Victoria, then Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII, and her father George VI. The chapters about E's early life are very subjective and short on detail (as are most of the ones that focus on her). The last third of the book revolves around the disaster of the Price and Princess of Wales' marriage and its ramifications. I should have known this was another Diana-centric vehicle from the minute I began reading the introduction, which deals with the Queen's reaction to Diana's death.

In all, I think it is a shame that the book was really no more revealing or informational than a wikipedia article, plumped up with details about E's relatives and children's problems in order to make it seem substantial. I managed to enjoy a few fascinating facts about Elizabeth that I had not previously known, but they were few and far between.

I have read numerous books about the life and times of Queen Elizabeth II/the British Royal Family and this is one of the best so far. It feels more like history than tabloid and is easy to follow. I also feel that it sets the record straight on many subjects, especially the difficulties with Diana. I truly could not put this book down! Read and enjoy!

Enjoyable and educational - very well done. Lacey is a very good "royal watcher" - always seems to be honest enough without blowing his own horn.

This is not your usual tell all from an anonymous source - this is history. While she has little real power, she is a woman who has had a remarkable life and many varied prime ministers from Churchill to Thatcher to Blair - very different people who all came to respect her and I think surprised by her knowledge of the government and country and how it all works. It also provides some insight into her children's lives and how she was as a parent. This is a very enjoyable book to read and a great follow up to Majesty which I also recommend strongly.

I was preparing for a speech about Queen Elizabeth the Second, purchased this book and never looked back. Full of information but not over one's head, a very enjoyable read.

This book is magnifique. Elizabeth II is Beckham.u. She s'epous.u within the tree, the cross and the daa. The book is reading Russia U. It is English 2.u. The book is literally constructed. The Introit is the tree. So who doie vie.u? Cardinal 2. Alas and a oui, she is still Princess Elizabeth 123.tree. Charles Philip Arthur George s'epous.u au desou, and he is very happy teu. The book is a lot of love. It's pretty teu.