Eleanor: Crown Jewel of Aquitaine (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "It rains again..." (more)
Key Phrases: Clotaire the Strong, Archbishop du Loroux, Abbot Suger (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7-Eleanor's story begins in Poitiers, where she lives in a castle with her father, Duke William X of Aquitaine; her younger sister; and her grandmother. The 13-year-old's days are filled with lessons, court gossip and intrigue, and royal feasts. As a young lady approaching the marrying age, she and others are on the lookout for a suitable husband for her. Eleanor's diary is also the repository of some of the seamy details of life, including fleas in people's hair. When she marries the King of France's son, Louis the Younger, she goes to Paris to assume her new royal duties. With attention focused on the small details of life and her youthful dreams, Eleanor comes to life. At the same time, readers learn about this period and some of its inhabitants through her eyes. An epilogue, historical note, family tree, photographs, and glossary of characters round out the book. Fans of the series will devour this installment.
Kristen Oravec, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Strongsville, OH
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 3-6. Gregory finds a near-perfect individual for the Royal Diaries series in Eleanor of Aquitaine and does her subject justice. The story begins in 1136, when Eleanor is a disobedient 13-year-old in her father's ducal palace, and ends in 1137, when she marries and becomes queen of France. In this fictional diary, Eleanor records a wide variety of events and displays myriad emotions while creating an informative backdrop of the social and religious customs of the twelfth century. The characterizations of the lively Eleanor, her protective grandmother, and her troubled father are all convincing within their time and place. The book ends with an epilogue, a historical note, a Capet-Plantagenet family tree, and a list of characters (some historical, some fictional). Illustrations, also grouped at the end, include black-and-white reproductions of period paintings and engravings, photos of places and artifacts, and a map. A rewarding addition to a popular series. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Hardcover: 190 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.; 1st Printing (September 2002) edition (November 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439164842
• ISBN-13: 978-0439164849
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #278,101 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite Royal Diary so far., October 19, 2002

By	hiphopgirl_1000 - See all my reviews

Thirteen-year-old Eleanor is the oldest daughter of Count William Aquitaine, and heir to her Father's powerful empire even since her younger brother died at the age of four. Being a teenage girl, Eleanor and her younger sister Petronilla, live in the many beautiful palaces of her father and are under the care of their Grandmere, who also gave Eleanor this diary to write in. Mischieveous Eleanor is always a constant struggle to her Grandmere and ladies-in-waiting. However, Eleanor's light, happy life takes a turn when her careless father, dies of food-poisoning, on their pilgrimage to Spain. All of a sudden Eleanor finds herself owning a bunch of land and bethrothed, for political reasons, to sixteen-year-old Prince Louis VII of France. Eleanor knows that her father's many lands, which is even bigger than King Louis's empire is very much the reason for the bethrol. Through this all Eleanor wonders if she can ever marry only for love and nothing else. Her perseptives change though when she finally meets her young teenage husband, and the sparks between them fly. This is definitely my favorite Royal Diary. I am quite the romantic and I loved Prince Louis and Eleanor's romance, it was brilliantly written. I can tell much research was made to write this book and I recommend all fans to read it.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Royal Diary ever!, October 15, 2002

By	"royaldiaryfan2000" (Aston, PA United States) - See all my reviews

I thought this book would be boring and bought it early at a September bookfair to complete my Royal Diaries collection, but when I read it-I found it too be better than Gregory's earlier Royal Diary-Cleopatra.Not only better thna Cleopatra, but better than any of the Royal Diaries! The story follows the teenage years of Eleanor, the oldest daughter of the duke of Aquitaine-a French duchy.As a teenage girl-Eleanor lives a life in her father's many castles-particularly Poitiers and Talmont-by-the-Sea under the education of her Grandmere (Grandmother) along with her dearest sister, Petronilla. Over the years we see the beautful and artistic court of Aquitaine-which is very genuine considering the courts of other countries are artless and dank places. Anyway, we hear stories of Eleanor's past-filled with tragic deaths-including her four-year-old brother's which is heartbreaking.We hear Eleanor's love interest over a knight-Clotaire the Stronger and we even get to experience her strong and fantasy like relationship with Petronilla.However, after her father's many careless and artistic years as Duke of Aquitaine, he begins to become a religious man and decides to take a religious pilgrimage to a cathedral in Spain.Taking his daughters only as far as Bordeaux, he dies only months later of food poisoning he contracted from uncooked fish. Eleanor is placed under the guardianship of the King of France-Louis VI.Since Eleanor now holds more land than the king-Louis marries Eleanor to his son-14 year old Louis VII.Eleanor instantly falls in love with him.Although she meets him in the most unexpected spot-she is in the lake having jumped in with so much excitement.A shirtless boy with golden hair and a tanned chest helps her out.Only thne doe sshe realize it's her teenage husband. We then begin to hear of her love for Louis and his for her and their secret meetings. The story ends only a few days after the marriage of the two teens-who travel on their wedding night to secure a castle that endsin a military tragedy.It's not the romance Eleanor imagines.The last entry is when Eleanor finds out Louis's father-the king-died of dysenterry and now she is the queen of France and Aquitaine with her husband at her side! This is a romantic and lively story that is well-written researched, full of great vocabulary, gives a great insight on Eleanor's later life, and shows the world of the wonderful court of the duchy of Aquitaine.This book is great and everyone should read it!-don't just buy it to finsih the collection.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great addition to The Royal Diaries, October 23, 2002

By A Customer

After enjoying Cleopatra VII, I knew that Kristiana Gregory's second book in The Royal Diaries would be very detailed and well-written. Even though I expected this book to be excellent, it even outreached my expectations. The story begins when Eleanor receives a diary from Grandmere (her grandmother). She writes of daily activies with her sister Petronilla, events at the castle, people of the government, etc. When her father, the Duke of Aquitaine, plans to go on a pilgrimage and dies shortly after reaching his destination, Eleanor's life is completely changed. She is the Duchess of Aquitaine and must be held under severe security. Because she holds more land than the King of France, he marries her to his son, Louis the Younger. Eleanor is fond of him from the early beginning. As they venture to return home, both are informed that King Louis of France has died, and now they are both the new king and queen. This was a very excellent addition to The Royal Diaries. If you are looking to start off the series, I would recommend this as a beginning.