Learn more about her life for the Diamond Jubilee
In this magisterial new biography, New York Times
bestselling author Sally Bedell Smith brings to life one of
the worldβs most fascinating and enigmatic women: Queen
Elizabeth II.
From the moment of her ascension to the throne in 1952 at
the age of twenty-five, Queen Elizabeth II has been the
object of unparalleled scrutiny. But through the fog of
glamour and gossip, how well do we really know the worldβs
most famous monarch? Drawing on numerous interviews and
never-before-revealed documents, acclaimed biographer Sally
Bedell Smith pulls back the curtain to show in intimate
detail the public and private lives of Queen Elizabeth II,
who has led her country and Commonwealth through the wars
and upheavals of the last sixty years with unparalleled
composure, intelligence, and grace.
In Elizabeth the Queen, we meet the young girl who
suddenly becomes βheiress presumptiveβ when her uncle
abdicates the throne. We meet the thirteen-year-old Lilibet
as she falls in love with a young navy cadet named Philip
and becomes determined to marry him, even though her parents
prefer wealthier English aristocrats. We see the teenage
Lilibet repairing army trucks during World War II and
standing with Winston Churchill on the balcony of Buckingham
Palace on V-E Day. We see the young Queen struggling to
balance the demands of her job with her role as the mother
of two young children. Sally Bedell Smith brings us inside
the palace doors and into the Queenβs daily routinesβthe
βred boxesβ of documents she reviews each day, the weekly
meetings she has had with twelve prime ministers, her
physically demanding tours abroad, and the constant scrutiny
of the pressβas well as her personal relationships: with
Prince Philip, her husband of sixty-four years and the love
of her life; her children and their often-disastrous
marriages; her grandchildren and friends.
Compulsively readable and scrupulously researched,
Elizabeth the Queen is a close-up view of a woman
weβve known only from a distance, illuminating the lively
personality, sense of humor, and canny intelligence with
which she meets the most demanding work and family
obligations. It is also a fascinating window into life at
the center of the last great monarchy.
Start Reading ELIZABETH THE QUEEN Now
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