Royal: Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

By Robert Lacey

Book Overview

Royal is a celebration and analysis of Britain's monarchy - an explanation of why most people feel good about The Queen and why it is okay to feel that way - tracing the evolution of monarchy's alliance with popular culture which is both its strength and weakness today.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316859400
• ISBN13: 9780316859400
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Length: 48 Pages
• Weight: 2.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Not bad at all

This is an interesting book about the British queen. The author tells us about her background, family and life. The biography starts with a chapter on Princess Diana's funeral, while the next chapter starts with Queen Elizabeth's great-great-grandmother; Queen Victoria. Lacey keeps following the family line. He writes about Edward VII and his mistress Alice Keppel (Duchess Camilla's great-grandmother). One thing that was totally new to me is what the author writes about Mrs. Keppel's husband: Hon. George Keppel should have come from a family whose family should have been "founded on the supply of sexual favours to the throne." Robert Lacey writes that Arnold Joost van Keppel was William III's 16-year-old lover, and that the lad had come over from Holland with the king in 1688. William III had given him the earldom of Albemarle and several other titles. Still, this is not a 'scandal book' about the Queen, and when it comes to Princess Diana, I get the impression that the author sides with Queen Elizabeth in most ways. (It's not a scandal book about Duchess Camilla either). The book is filled with a lot of information, and because the book is well written, it is quite an easy book to read. I really liked the family tree and a map that tells you where you can find all the homes of the royal family. It made it easier to right away know which family member or home Robert Lacey was referring to. There is also a brilliant `encyclopaedia' in the back that explains who is who in the book. I also enjoyed that "Royal. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II" contained many photos of the Queen and her family.