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Tina Brown. Doubleday. New York. 2007. Book review by Jane
I didn't read this book in one sitting. My eyes like large print books, and because of this fact, I put the book down quite often. That is probably why I found myself dreaming about the characters in this book. Or maybe it is the intensity of these lives that were followed. The book is a thorough look at Diana, Princess of Wales. The book explains all the gossip and where it originated in those tabloids we saw at the supermarket back in the 1990s, even though I did not remember the contents of the front pages. I never much paid attention to them. But the book also went into detail about the princess, her family life, and her public life.
The author did not just open the tabloids and make up more gossip for us; she instead researched her subject well. She went into detail about the newspapers and media personalities and entities that followed her, and what their beef really was with the princess and the royal family. This author put a human face on all the "characters" in this book, and even had a follow up chapter that tells where these people are now. I found the chapter to be like the follow up scrolling at the end of a made for TV movie that tells where everyone is now, and loved it; however, if this book was a movie, it would be a first class A movie.
As far as Princess Diana and the royal family go, the book takes on the good and bad aspects of all involved. I hated to read some of it. I am sure I can say without spoiling the read that there was some very grown-up drama going on in the family, and the book breaks down what actually was happening and why, based on the personalities involved and the events. When I picked up the book, I knew that Diana and Charles had divorced, and that was all I knew about them other than they had done a great deal for charity causes. So the book was an education for me, but I would suspect it would be for anyone who reads it.
The story could break your heart if you let it. One thing that the author put in the book is what made the difference with the royal family after Diana, especially upon her death. She discussed how and why the royal family changed forever with Diana.
The one thing I think that the book needed was pictures of the people involved. All the people involved; including the royals and their guards, the Spencers, and all the journalists and media personalities, could have been pictured. There should be more pictures of Diana in the center of the book. I am not sure why there are no pictures in the book; there may be a good reason for it. I am sure you can Google the people to find out what they look like. It would be great to put a face with the people outlined.
Jane.
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Would you like to see more reviews like this one? Jane of Book Reader's Traverse prefers to scan the library database for books to read, grabbing titles from many sources. She reviews many non-fiction titles, as well as some fiction of the day. Visit her picks page for her bio and other reviews--Jane's Picks.
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