No comments about The Works of Charles Kingsley: Volume 8: Letters & Memorie., Volume II.

1 comments about Churchill, the Member for Woodford.

1. Sir Winston Churchill is one of the most thoroughly biographied people in history, so it's surprising to find a biography that really covers new ground. This one does.

   Woodford is the London suburb that Churchill represented in Parliament during the most important decades of his sweeping career. And even while he was striding the world stage, he had responsibilities to the community that elected him. This is an intriguing, and at times surprisingly touching, view of the Great Man's relations with his constituency committee, the candidates who stood for office against him, and the men and women of Woodford.

   Most touching is the story of Churchill's ultimate decision to leave Parliament, and the mixture of sadness and relief this occasioned in Woodford. They knew they were lucky to have him. So were we all.

1 comments about Orwell (Life & Times Series) (Life&Times).

1. In my youth, after reading Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, I considered George Orwell to be that quintessential beacon of political conscience, that single moral compass, a man with a terrifying awareness of the evils of political subterfuge, a man who left us with an essential warning: be vigilant!
   
   A contribution to the Life & Times series, Orwell, by Professor Scott Lucas, is not so much another project of sentimental praise or hagiography of a writer, but a successful attempt at objectivity, revealing a novelist, essayist and critic of popular culture who, at the end of his life, collaborated with "Big Brother" (British Intelligence) naming names of communists that he believed posed a threat to British (western) democracy. This list of 36 men and women remains a secret, and the British authorities continue to hold on to the list in the name of national security. This is a major contradiction of the man, considering he was the author of Nineteen Eighty-Four.
   
   Lucas does not involve himself in petty character assassination, demolishing this twentieth century icon for some sort of personal, political or academic gain. In fact, Professor Lucas reinforces Orwell's "decency", a man of courageous sensibilities; however, his "Englishness" as the author points out, remained a staple throughout his writing career.
   
   For the most part, this short critical biography touches upon Orwell's major writings, analysing each in a fair and interesting manner. Most twentieth century critics believe Orwell to be an essayist, a political critic, more so than a novelist. I believe Lucas agrees with this assessment, though, when one re-reads, `Down and Out in Paris and London', `Homage to Catalonia', `Animal Farm' or `Nineteen Eighty-Four', would have to admit that his talent as a novelist, although not genius, is excellent.
   
   This is a highly polished work, extremely well written and insightful in terms of the author's goal of objectivity. As an admitted hero-worshiper, it was a learning experience to read a piece on Orwell that attempted to approach the subject from many perspectives, some good, some not so, without bias in any form.
   
   That said, my only criticism is that the book should be longer, unpacking a few arguments that required further elaboration, however, it is obvious that the author was under space constraints from his editors. Then again, without question, this is a minor quibble.
   
   Although there seems to be many works on George Orwell, and many excellent biographies, (`Orwell: A Wintry Conscious of a Generation' is noteworthy) this one is surprisingly good: entertaining and educational.

No comments about Charles Dickens: A Concise Biography (Pocket Biographies).

No comments about The Story of Two Noble Lives Being Memorials of Charlotte, Countess Canning and Louisa Marchioness of Waterford Part One.

No comments about Geschichte der Revolutionszeit von 1789 bis 1800: Band 5. Erste Abteilung.

5 comments about Becoming Victoria.

1. her father died when she was a baby ,her mother was determine to keep her to herself by controling her ever move and thought.she even had victoria sleep ing everynight in her bedroom.victoria didn't get any freedom until becoming queen.



2. I think the thing I found most interesting about this book was the total screwiness of Victoria's mother, the Dutchess of Kent. I admit that the Dutchess was in kind of a rough spot: She was raising a monarch after all, and yet wanted to raise her to within the standards of ladylike behaviour. Can't have her going around refering to herself with male terminology like Queen Elizabeth I did, y'know.

   But in the process, the thing the Dutchess seemed to always have her eye on was the possibility of a Regency. She *wanted* to be Regent. How screwed up do you have to be to *want* to be Regent? All the responsibility, none of the adoring crowds. Yuck!

   So she was torn between the necessity of producing in Victoria a princess who could eventually take the throne (because if she failed in providing an appropriate education and upbringing the King had made it pretty clear that he *would* ensure Victoria received same, even if it meant removing her from her mother's tender care) while wanting to keep her daughter from being *able* to take the throne at 18 (there was a possibility of a regency until she reached 21), all the while hoping that King George would hurry up and die already. Which may in part be the author's spin on things, but the good Dutchess did *repeatedly* write about the possibility of a regency until Victoria was 21 even *after* Victoria was declared competent to take the throne when she reached majority at 18 (said declaration taking place several years ahead of time), which kind of points to having some serious hopes caught up in that regency.

   Victoria herself just seems like a kid caught in the middle and kept from having much fun. She got to read a lot of "improving" books, which are those sort of kids books that beat you over the head with the idea that you should always do what Mommy tells you and never, ever, talk to strangers and aren't a lot of fun, and the rest of her childhood really does fit with that choice in reading material.




3. Princesses have become an item of interest in the past few years. Possibly they always have been, but series such as The Royal Diaries--fictional diaries by true life princesses-- are filling library and bookstore shelves.

   In this aristocratic climate, Becoming Victoria by Lynne Vallone stands out. Becoming Victoria examines the girlhood/teenagehood of the young woman who became Queen Victoria and consequently, the enduring symbol of an era. Ms Vallone has undertaken the remarkable task of examining how Victoria was reared, comparing her upbringing to the upbringing of contemporaries (not princesses), chronicling Victoria's relationship with her mother and illustrating the gap between the portrayal of Victoria's youth, both at the time and retrospectively, and how Victoria herself truly felt and acted.

   The reader leaves this book convinced that truth is indeed stranger than fiction or at least as strange and as remarkable. Although Becoming Victoria is not necessarily geared towards teens (and is more expositive than books such as The Royal Diaries), the insight into a princess' curriculum, familial relationships, day-to-day activities should fascinate the readership that delves into Meg Cabot's The Princess Diaries and Gail Levine's The Princess Tales.

   Becoming Victoria ends, rather disappointingly, at Victoria's ascension to the throne. This is, however, in accordance with the task set by the author. Victoria the child and teenager is Ms Vallone's focus, and she ends once her subject passes into a different stage. Consequently, the reader's appetite is whet to do further study on a most fascinating woman and queen.

   Recommendation: The price is not too bad. It is a beautifully bound book and may be worth buying new. However, if your interest is in the content, not the appearance, try used.




4. This work was full of interesting facts, but was written more like a college text book. It paints a picture of a very charming child and gives the reader insight into the influences in Victoria's early life and the early formation of her character as she grew into the roll of Queen Mother. The facts are nice, the subject is great, but the text book feel is dull and dry.



5. I was expecting a biography on Victoria's early life, but I would not classify this book as such. It was more a dissertation on how the child rearing practices of Georgian England ultimately affected the personality of the future Queen Victoria.

   You can tell after skimming just a few pages of this book that a huge amount of research went into it (there are more that 40 pages of footnotes and references), but I found it very difficult to read and even harder to follow. It concentrated almost exclusively on the mundane facts of how she lived, rather than on who she was. There are hundreds of detailed descriptions of the clothes she wore, the books she read, the food she ate, and the toys she played with. There were even more descriptions on how the people around her influenced the food she ate, the books she read, the toys she played etc, etc.

   So don't get this book if you are looking for a biography about Victoria's early life, but check it out from the library if you want to see some truly beautiful illustrations (some by Victoria's own hand) and some outstanding photographs.

No comments about Disraeli's Disciple: The Scandalous Life of George Smythe.

No comments about Leaves from the Highland Journals of Queen Victoria.

No comments about Letters Of Queen Victoria, A Selection From Her Majesty's Correspondence Between The Years 1837 And 1861, Published By Authority Of His Majesty The King; Vol I.