The Sun: The Queen Mum: Her First 100 Years: The Queen Mum - Her First Hundred Years Book

This proudly populist book written by two Sun journalists promises to lift the veil of mystery surrounding Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. Ultimately, this promise is not fulfilled--the Queen Mum has never done an interview since she received a stern ticking-off for giving a brief and innocent interview to a newspaper around the time of her engagement. But the fun in this celebration of her life is that there is plenty in the public domain to enthral and delight those familiar with the facts of her dedication to Royal duty and the anecdotes of her famous wit, as well as much to intrigue those to whom she has always been an elegant gran beneficently beaming on television. Those in the latter group cannot fail to view her in a new light at reading Hitler's opinion of her being "the most dangerous woman in Europe".Perhaps to give the turnarounds of her dramatic life a point of reference to our more recent experiences of the Royal family, several shadows are thrown against the image of the Queen Elizabeth and her relationship to her husband, King George VI: namely their contemporaries the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and the more recent figures of Prince Charles, Princess Diana (whose common touch she shared), and Camilla Parker-Bowles. The relationship between the Queen and Wallis Simpson was famously cold: Elizabeth never forgave Wallis for being the cause of Edward VIII's abdication and blamed her for the early death of her beloved husband who was devastated by the pressures of a crown he never expected. Elizabeth's repulsion at the behaviour of her favourite grandson and his wife is also a worthy subject for coverage, telling us as it does so much about the huge shift in mutual attitudes between the media and a new generation of royals, as well as changes in our society. Less intriguing perhaps is the labouring of tenuous comparisons and trivialities that tend to uselessly encumber a narrative of a life fascinating enough without them. The jewels in the crown though are undoubtedly the photographs recording a life spent in the service of her country and her family. The Sun: The Queen Mum will not be the only book published to celebrate her 100 years, but is a great addition to your collection next to the mugs, plates and specially minted coins. But this is one old lady who's worth every penny.--Christine ButteryRead More