Mary Queen of Scots | 
pickI read this (gasp) thirty-five years ago in high school and decided to revisit it. I was really pleased with how well it holds up! Meticulously detailed, so you have to really commit to understanding the finer points of Scottish history, but well-written. And it's hard to be bored when there are so many moments that feel like they were ripped from a modern soap opera.
The one plus to spending so much time on airplanes in the past few days is that I got to catch up on some recent movie releases! Finally saw Mary Queen of Scots and now I want to read all about her. Any recommendations? Any good fiction out there with her as the main character?
I am about to start the new movie that came out last year. I hope I like it seeing she was my great x 9 grandmother and Henry VIII was my great grandfather x12.
pickI‘m a sucker for any book that screams #royalty. I read this one a while back, and even though it was about Mary, Queen of Scots, I was intrigued by Queen Elizabeth. She was sly, ruthless, consumed by jealousy, and made a very interesting character. Reminded me of Machiavelli‘s The Prince. #literaryluck
September 2018 recap: 18 books read, despite 2 weeks of vacation (I usually don't read as much on vacation)
Fave book: Mary Queen of Scots, by Antonia Fraser
Least fave book: Insurrection, by Robyn Young (a DNF)
pickA.S. Byatt nails it in her blurb when she calls this biography sympathetic but not uncritical and highlights how Fraser has a novelist's eye. This does read smoothly and considers the key players fairly. It is the benchmark against which I will measure other treatments of Mary.
I didn't know that thought about Hamlet and Gertrude! I'm going to have to read the supplemental material in my Folger Shakespeare edition more closely to see what it says.
Captain William BLACKADDER?! 😂
Me: 😳 Oh my, what a title!
...
Me: 😶 Oh my, there's a typo!
And then "the corpse was solemnly declared guilty" ???
"Otherwise nothing untoward marked the celebrations, except that the Sire de Saint-Jehan, favourite of the dauphin, had his eye put out during the jousting; but even this minor tragedy was not held to mar the general celebrations."
It was only a flesh wound?!
Long weekend day 2 of 3: quality time with Mary, Queen of Scots.
pickThis was a comprehensive, extremely detailed biography on the life and times of Mary Queen of Scots. I add this to the list of”must reads” for any non fiction history fans out there. It‘s rare that a history book leads me to sleepless nights and reading sessions supplied with tissues, but this one did just that. Highly recommend 5/5
❝No more tears now; I will think of revenge.❞
— Mary Queen of Scots ⚔️
Sitting on the patio and reading together on a sunny morning. #dogsoflitsy
Both of these books involve Mary Queen of Scots and were published in the 1960s (the Dunnett in 1964 and the Fraser in 1969).
#aprilbookshowers day 6
I love the funny and poignant foreword in this edition.
I am reading these two books in tandem, so that I can compare Fraser's approach and interpretation with Guy's before I forget who is who in the story.
My mum has an extensive collection of books about British history and the royal family (and their ancestors). I borrowed this one from her at Christmas and am hoping to read it in conjunction with the Lymond Chronicles.
#readjanuary
Starting this tonight! Normally I love to read about Elizabeth but I thought I'd give this queen a try 😜📚
Poor Mary is looking likely to come out stupid and vacuous after all.
Lunch with MQSTSVW (Mary Queen of Scots, that stupid, vacuous woman - so named by my high school history teacher, the fabulous Miss Mehrtens. Reading Antoni Fraser to see if the abbreviation fits.)
