Title search results
Showing 81 - 100 of 866 items
At Her Majesty's Request: An African Princess in Victorian England
By Walter Dean Myers. 1999
Meghan: A Hollywood Princess
By Andrew Morton. 2018
From Andrew Morton, the New York Times bestselling author of Diana: Her True Story, comes a revealing, juicy, and inspiring…
biography of Meghan Markle, the American actress who won Prince Harry's heart. When Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were set up by a mutual friend on a blind date in July 2016, little did they know that the resulting whirlwind romance would lead to their engagement in November 2017 and marriage in May 2018. Since then, our fascination with the woman who has smashed the royal mold has rocketed. So different from those coy brides of recent history, Meghan is confident, charismatic, and poised; her warm and affectionate engagement interview won the hearts of the world. In this first-ever biography of the duchess-to-be, acclaimed royal biographer Andrew Morton goes back to Meghan's roots to uncover the story of her childhood growing up in The Valley in Los Angeles, her studies at an all-girls Catholic school, and her fraught family life-a painful experience mirrored by Harry's own background. Morton also delves into her previous marriage and divorce in 2013, her struggles in Hollywood as her mixed heritage was time and again used against her, her big break in the hit TV show Suits, and her work for a humanitarian ambassador-the latter so reminiscent of Princess Diana's passions. Finally, we see how the royal romance played out across two continents but was kept fiercely secret, before the news finally broke and Meghan was thrust into the global media's spotlight like never before. Drawing on exclusive interviews with her family members and closest friends, and including never-before-seen photographs, Morton introduces us to the real Meghan as he reflects on the impact that she has already had on the rigid traditions of the House of Windsor, as well as what the future might hold.Harry: A Biography Of A Prince
By Angela Levin. 2018
An eye-opening, monumental biography of Prince Harry by a veteran journalist on royal affairs who accompanied the prince on his…
royal duties for a year and was granted privileged access to his home in Kensington Palace. Once a reckless rebel and now a respected role model, Prince Harry is one of the world's most popular royals and the force behind giving the British royal family a twenty-first century makeover. How has he done it? This insightful new biography is a three-dimensional look at what Harry is really like as a person, both on and off royal duty. It is written by distinguished journalist and author Angela Levin, who accompanied Prince Harry on many of his engagements and had exclusive access to him at Kensington Palace. The book unwraps the real man behind the camera, and his own perceptive insights. It delves into his troubled childhood and the lasting effect of losing his adored mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, so young. It explores his rebellious teenage years and the key defining moments that have enabled him to face his demons and use this experience to help others who struggle with mental, emotional and physical pain. Angela Levin found a complex man who has inherited his late mother's extraordinary charisma and is determined to "make a difference." After finding the love of his life in Meghan Markle, and in anticipation of their marriage this year, this is an investigation into the real life of Prince Harry.Æthelred: The Unready
By Levi Roach. 2016
Elizabeth I: Collected Works
By Leah S Marcus, Janel Mueller, Mary Beth Rose. 2000
This long-awaited and masterfully edited volume contains nearly all of the writings of Queen Elizabeth I: the clumsy letters of…
childhood, the early speeches of a fledgling queen, and the prayers and poetry of the monarch's later years. The first collection of its kind, "Elizabeth I" reveals brilliance on two counts: that of the Queen, a dazzling writer and a leading intellect of the English Renaissance, and that of the editors, whose copious annotations make the book not only essential to scholars but accessible to general readers as well.Augustus
By Adrian Goldsworthy. 2014
Caesar Augustus' story, one of the most riveting in western history, is filled with drama and contradiction, risky gambles and…
unexpected success. He began as a teenage warlord, whose only claim to power was as the heir of the murdered Julius Caesar. Mark Antony dubbed him "a boy who owes everything to a name," but in the years to come the youth outmaneuvered all the older and more experienced politicians and was the last man standing in 30 BC. Over the next half century he reinvented himself as a servant of the state who gave Rome peace and stability, and created a new system of government--the Principate or rule of an emperor. In this highly anticipated biography Goldsworthy puts his deep knowledge of ancient sources to full use, recounting the events of Augustus' long life in greater detail than ever before. Goldsworthy pins down the man behind the myths: a consummate manipulator, propagandist, and showman, both generous and ruthless. Under Augustus' rule the empire prospered, yet his success was never assured and the events of his life unfolded with exciting unpredictability. Goldsworthy captures the passion and savagery, the public image and private struggles of the real man whose epic life continues to influence western history.Eleanor of Aquitaine
By Marion Meade. 1977
Marion Meade has told the story of Eleanor wild devious from a thoroughly historical but different point…
of view a woman s point of view --Allene Talmey VogueVictoria: Portrait of a Queen
By Catherine Reef. 2017
Catherine Reef brings history vividly to life in this sumptuously illustrated account of a confident, strong-minded, and influential woman. Victoria…
woke one morning at the age of eighteen to discover that her uncle had died and she was now queen. She went on to rule for sixty-three years, with an influence so far-reaching that the decades of her reign now bear her name—the Victorian period. Victoria is filled with the exciting comings and goings of royal life: intrigue and innuendo, scheming advisors, and assassination attempts, not to mention plenty of passion and discord. Includes bibliography, notes, British royal family tree, index.Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War
By Robert K. Massie. 1991
"A classic [that] covers superbly a whole era...Engrossing in its glittering gallery of characters."CHICAGO SUN-TIMES. Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Robert K.…
Massie has written a richly textured and gripping chronicle of the personal and national rivalries that led to the twentieth century's first great arms race. Massie brings to vivid life, such historical figures as the single-minded Admiral von Tirpitz, the young, ambitious, Winston Churchill, the ruthless, sycophantic Chancellor Bernhard von Bulow, and many others. Their story, and the story of the era, filled with misunderstandings, missed opportunities, and events leading to unintended conclusions, unfolds like a Greek tragedy in his powerful narrative. Intimately human and dramatic, DREADNOUGHT is history at its most riveting.The Empress of Art: Catherine the Great and the Transformation of Russia
By Susan Jaques. 2016
Ruthless and passionate, Catherine the Great is singularly responsible for amassing one of the most awe-inspiring collections of art in…
the world and turning St. Petersburg in to a world wonder. The Empress of Art brings to life the creation of this captivating woman's greatest legacy An art-oriented biography of the mighty Catherine the Great, who rose from seemingly innocuous beginnings to become one of the most powerful people in the world. A German princess who married a decadent and lazy Russian prince, Catherine mobilized support amongst the Russian nobles, playing off of her husband's increasing corruption and abuse of power. She then staged a coup that ended with him being strangled with his own scarf in the halls of the palace, and she being crowned the Empress of Russia. Intelligent and determined, Catherine modeled herself off of her grandfather in-law, Peter the Great, and sought to further modernize and westernize Russia. She believed that the best way to do this was through a ravenous acquisition of art, which Catherine often used as a form of diplomacy with other powers throughout Europe. She was a self-proclaimed "glutton for art" and she would be responsible for the creation of the Hermitage, one of the largest museums in the world, second only to the Louvre. Catherine also spearheaded the further expansion of St. Petersburg, and the magnificent architectural wonder the city became is largely her doing. There are few women in history more fascinating than Catherine the Great, and for the first time, Susan Jaques brings her to life through the prism of art.Representations of Elizabeth I in Early Modern Culture
By Laura Tosi, Alessandra Petrina. 2011
The volume explores Elizabeth I's impact on English and European culture during her life and after her death, through her own…
writing as well as through contemporary and later writers. The contributors are codicologists, historians and literary critics, offering a varied reading of the Queen and of her cultural inheritance.The Complete Princess Trilogy
By Jean Sasson. 2001
For the first time, the New York Times bestselling PRINCESS books are available in one ebook.IT ALL BEGAN WITH PRINCESS,…
called "Absolutely riveting..." by People Magazine.The first book in this nonfiction trilogy describes the true life of Princess Sultana, a princess in the royal house of Saudi Arabia where she lives in a "gilded cage" with no freedom and no control over her own life.The saga continues with PRINCESS SULTANA'S DAUGHTERS called "Another page turner..." by Publishers Weekly. DAUGHTERS continues the extraordinary story of Princess Sultana. Gripping and personal, DAUGHTERS recounts the lonely battle of a Princess who is attempting to secure freedoms for her daughters.The third and last book completes the PRINCESS TRILOGY, called a "Political rallying cry...." by Publisher's Weekly. CIRCLE paints a horrifying reality for women of the desert kingdom. As Sultana battles for a life of dignity, she saves other women from servitude.THE PRINCESS TRILOGY is the testimony of a woman of indomitable spirit and great courage.You have never read a story like Sultana's, and you will never forget her or her Muslim sisters.A New York Times bestseller, PRINCESS was named one of the 500 Great Books by Women since 1300. It was also an Alternate Selection of the Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club and a Reader's Digest Selection.PRAISE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER PRINCESS:"A chilling story...a vivid account of an air-conditioned nightmare..." --Entertainment Weekly"Must-reading for anyone interested in human rights." --USA Today"Shocking...candid...sad, sobering, and compassionate..." --San Francisco ChronicleRoyal Representations: Queen Victoria and British Culture, 1837-1876
By Margaret Homans. 1998
Queen Victoria was one of the most complex cultural productions of her age. In Royal Representations, Margaret Homans investigates the…
meanings Victoria held for her times, Victoria's own contributions to Victorian writing and art, and the cultural mechanisms through which her influence was felt. Arguing that being, seeming, and appearing were crucial to Victoria's "rule," Homans explores the variability of Victoria's agency and of its representations using a wide array of literary, historical, and visual sources. Along the way she shows how Victoria provided a deeply equivocal model for women's powers in and out of marriage, how Victoria's dramatic public withdrawal after Albert's death helped to ease the monarchy's transition to an entirely symbolic role, and how Victoria's literary self-representations influenced debates over political self-representation. Homans considers versions of Victoria in the work of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, George Eliot, John Ruskin, Margaret Oliphant, Lewis Carroll, Alfred Lord Tennyson, and Julia Margaret Cameron.Masked
By Alfred Habegger. 1846
A brave British widow goes to Siam and-by dint of her principled and indomitable character-inspires that despotic nation to abolish…
slavery and absolute rule: this appealing legend first took shape after the Civil War when Anna Leonowens came to America from Bangkok and succeeded in becoming a celebrity author and lecturer. Three decades after her death, in the 1940s and 1950s, the story would be transformed into a powerful Western myth by Margaret Landon's best-selling book "Anna and the King of Siam" and Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical "The King and I. " But who was Leonowens and why did her story take hold? Although it has been known for some time that she was of Anglo-Indian parentage and that her tales about the Siamese court are unreliable, not until now, with the publication of "Masked," has there been a deeply researched account of her extraordinary life. Alfred Habegger, an award-winning biographer, draws on the archives of five continents and recent Thai-language scholarship to disclose the complex person behind the mask and the troubling facts behind the myth. He also ponders the curious fit between Leonowens's compelling fabrications and the New World's innocent dreams-in particular the dream that democracy can be spread through quick and easy interventions. Exploring the full historic complexity of what it once meant to pass as white, "Masked" pays close attention to Leonowens's midlevel origins in British India, her education at a Bombay charity school for Eurasian children, her material and social milieu in Australia and Singapore, the stresses she endured in Bangkok as a working widow, the latent melancholy that often afflicted her, the problematic aspects of her self-invention, and the welcome she found in America, where a circle of elite New England abolitionists who knew nothing about Southeast Asia gave her their uncritical support. Her embellished story would again capture America's imagination as World War II ended and a newly interventionist United States looked toward Asia. "Edward I
By Michael Prestwich. 1997
Edward I--one of the outstanding monarchs of the English Middle Ages--pioneered legal and parliamentary change in England, conquered Wales, and…
came close to conquering Scotland. A major player in European diplomacy and war, he acted as peacemaker during the 1280s but became involved in a bitter war with Philip IV a decade later. This book is the definitive account of a remarkable king and his long and significant reign. Widely praised when it was first published in 1988, it is now reissued with a new introduction and updated bibliographic guide.Driving the Saudis
By Jayne Amelia Larson. 2012
After more than a decade of working in Hollywood, actress Jayne Amelia Larson found herself out of luck, out of…
work, and out of prospects. Without telling her friends or family, she took a job as a limousine driver, thinking that the work might be a good way to dig out of debt while meeting A-list celebrities and important movie moguls. When she got hired to drive for the Saudi royal family vacationing in Beverly Hills, Larson thought she'd been handed the golden ticket. She'd heard stories of the Saudis giving $20,000 tips and Rolex watches to their drivers. But when the family arrived at LAX with millions of dollars in cash--money that they planned to spend over the next couple of weeks--Larson realized that she might be in for the ride of her life. With awestruck humor and deep compassion, she describes her eye-opening adventures as the only female in a detail of over forty assigned to drive a beautiful Saudi princess, her family, and their extensive entourage. To be a good chauffeur means to be a "fly on the wall," to never speak unless spoken to, to never ask questions, to allow people to forget that you are there. The nature of the employment--Larson was on call 24 hours a day and 7 days a week--and the fact that she was the only female driver gave her an up close and personal view of one of the most closely guarded monarchies in the world, a culture of great intrigue and contradiction, and of unimaginable wealth. The Saudis traveled large: they brought furniture, Persian rugs, Limoges china, lustrous silver serving trays, and extraordinary coffees and teas from around the world. The family and their entourage stayed at several luxury hotels, occupying whole floors of each (the women housed separately from the Saudi men, whom Larson barely saw). Each day the royal women spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on plastic surgery and mega-shopping sprees on Rodeo Drive. Even the tea setup had its very own hotel room, while the servants were crammed together on rollaway beds in just a few small rooms down the hall. Larson witnessed plenty of drama: hundreds of hours of cosmetic surgery recovery, the purchasing of Hermès Birkin bags of every color, roiling battles among the upper-echelon entourage members all jockeying for a better position in the palace hierarchy, and the total disregard that most of the royal entourage had for their exhausted staff. But Driving the Saudis also reveals how Larson grew to understand the complicated nuances of a society whose strict customs remain intact even across continents. She saw the intimate bond that connected the royals with their servants and nannies; she befriended the young North African servant girls, who supported whole families back home by working night and day for the royals but were not permitted to hold their own passports lest they try to flee. While experiencing a life-changing "behind the veil" glimpse into Saudi culture, Larson ultimately discovers that we're all very much the same everywhere--the forces that corrupt us, make us desperate, and make us human are surprisingly universal.Mary Tudor
By Anna Whitelock. 2009
She was the first woman to inherit the throne of England, a key player in one of Britain's stormiest eras,…
and a leader whose unwavering faith and swift retribution earned her the nickname "Bloody Mary." Now, in this impassioned and absorbing debut, historian Anna Whitelock offers a modern perspective on Mary Tudor and sets the record straight once and for all on one of history's most compelling and maligned rulers. Though often overshadowed by her long-reigning sister, Elizabeth I, Mary lived a life full of defiance, despair, and triumph. Born the daughter of the notorious King Henry VIII and the Spanish Katherine of Aragon, young Mary was a princess in every sense of the word--schooled in regal customs, educated by the best scholars, coveted by European royalty, and betrothed before she had reached the age of three. Yet in a decade's time, in the wake of King Henry's break with the pope, she was declared a bastard, disinherited, and demoted from "princess" to "lady." Ever her deeply devout mother's daughter, Mary refused to accept her new status or to recognize Henry's new wife, Anne Boleyn, as queen. The fallout with her father and his counselors nearly destroyed the teenage Mary, who faced imprisonment and even death. It would be an outright battle for Mary to work herself back into the king's favor, claim her rightful place in the Tudor line, and ultimately become queen of England, but her coronation would not end her struggles. She flouted the opposition and married Philip of Spain, sought to restore Catholicism to the nation, and fiercely punished the resistance. But beneath her brave and regal exterior was a dependent woman prone to anxiety, whose private traumas of phantom pregnancies, debilitating illnesses, and unrequited love played out in the public glare of the fickle court. Anna Whitelock, an acclaimed young British historian, chronicles this unique woman's life from her beginnings as a heralded princess to her rivalry with her sister to her ascent as ruler. In brilliant detail, Whitelock reveals that Mary Tudor was not the weak-willed failure as so often rendered by traditional narratives but a complex figure of immense courage, determination, and humanity.Elizabeth I: Collected Works
By Mary Beth Rose, Janel Mueller, Leah S. Marcus, Elizabeth. 2000
This long-awaited and masterfully edited volume contains nearly all of the writings of Queen Elizabeth I: the clumsy letters of…
childhood, the early speeches of a fledgling queen, and the prayers and poetry of the monarch's later years. The first collection of its kind, Elizabeth I reveals brilliance on two counts: that of the Queen, a dazzling writer and a leading intellect of the English Renaissance, and that of the editors, whose copious annotations make the book not only essential to scholars but accessible to general readers as well. "This collection shines a light onto the character and experience of one of the most interesting of monarchs. . . . We are likely never to get a closer or clearer look at her. An intriguing and intense portrait of a woman who figures so importantly in the birth of our modern world."—Publishers Weekly "An admirable scholarly edition of the queen's literary output. . . . This anthology will excite scholars of Elizabethan history, but there is something here for all of us who revel in the English language."—John Cooper, Washington Times "Substantial, scholarly, but accessible. . . . An invaluable work of reference."—Patrick Collinson, London Review of Books "In a single extraordinary volume . . . Marcus and her coeditors have collected the Virgin Queen's letters, speeches, poems and prayers. . . . An impressive, heavily footnoted volume."—Library Journal "This excellent anthology of [Elizabeth's] speeches, poems, prayers and letters demonstrates her virtuosity and afford the reader a penetrating insight into her 'wiles and understandings.'"—Anne Somerset, New Statesman "Here then is the only trustworthy collection of the various genres of Elizabeth's writings. . . . A fine edition which will be indispensable to all those interested in Elizabeth I and her reign."—Susan Doran, History "In the torrent of words about her, the queen's own words have been hard to find. . . . [This] volume is a major scholarly achievement that makes Elizabeth's mind much more accessible than before. . . . A veritable feast of material in different genres."—David Norbrook, The New RepublicYoung Royals on Tour: William & Catherine in Canada
By Christina Blizzard. 2011
A day-by-day celebration in words and photographs of the young couple’s first tour of Canada. On April 29, 2011, Prince…
William of Wales married Catherine Middleton at Westminster Abbey in London. The newlyweds’ first royal tour took place in Canada from June 30 to July 8. People across the country rejoiced with the couple as they made their way through a land that holds special significance for the Royal Family, emphasizing and renewing the bond with Canada. This was not the Duke of Cambridges first trip "home to Canada," since he accompanied his parents, Charles and Diana, in 1991 and his father and brother, Harry, in 1998. This journey included such highlights as Canada Day in Ottawa, dragon boating in Prince Edward Island, visiting homeless youth in Quebec City, street hockey in Yellowknife, and a side trip to help bolster the courage of fire-devastated citizens in Slave Lake, Alberta. The Duke and Duchess presented the vibrant, modern face of the Royal Family, and excitement followed them everywhere as they travelled across Canada.Prince Edward, Duke of Kent: Father of the Canadian Crown
By Brigadier-General The Hon J J Grant, Nathan Tidridge. 2013
The story of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, is the story of early Canada. The story of Prince Edward Augustus,…
Duke of Kent (1767-1820) is also a story of early Canada. An active participant in the very genesis of the country, including discussions that would eventually lead to Confederation, the Prince lived in Quebec City, undertook historic tours of Upper Canada and the United States (both firsts for a member of the Royal Family) before he was stationed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, as commander-in-chief of British North America. Canada’s maps are dotted with his name (Prince Edward Island the most obvious example), making him one of the most honoured among our forgotten historical figures.Exiled from the court of his father, and accompanied by his long-time mistress Julie de St. Laurent, the 24-year-old Prince Edward Augustus arrived in Quebec City in 1791. His life became woven into the fabric of a highly-charged society and left an indelible mark on the role of the monarchy in Canada. Seventy years later the country would be united under the crown of his daughter, Victoria, Sir John A. Macdonald’s "Queen of Canada."