Books

Since the New Year, I’ve read several books. My daily bedtime ritual is to put my phone up and read for 30 minutes to an hour before going to sleep. Thanks to Hillary Mantel’s Wolf Hall series, I’ve been stuck in Tudor England for a while now. Nevertheless, I started the new year off differently. This year I started with Richard Ayoade and his comedic book Ayoade on Top, which was gifted to me by Jake.

I read the following books in the first quarter of 2024:

• Ayoade on Top is Richard Ayoade’s hysterical take on the movie View from the Top starring Gwyneth Paltrow. His writing is as humorous as the movie is ridiculous. It’s a nice quick read.
• The Princes in the Tower by Alison Weir. Weir makes a compelling case for who killed the Princes in the tower. I have to say I agree with her.
• Queens of the Conquest: England’s Medieval Queens by Alison Weir. This is the first in Weir’s trilogy focusing on England’s Medieval Queens. It starts with Queen Matilda, wife of the Conquerer, and brings us up to the start of the Plantagenet dynasty.
• Queens of the Crusade: England’s Medieval Queens by Alison Weir. The second volume of the trilogy covers from 1154 to 129. It begins with Eleanor of Aquitaine, arguably Medieval Europe’s most famous Queen.
• Queens of the Age of Chivalry: England’s Medieval Queens by Alison Weir. The final volume in her Medieval Queen trilogy, Weir takes us from 1299 to 1409. This volume includes Isabella of France, known as the “she-wolf of France” for overthrowing her husband the king to the beloved Phillipa of Hainault.
• Hunting the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and the Wedding that Shook Europe, by John Guy and Judy Fox. I’ve read numerous books both fiction and nonfiction on this topic and quite enjoyed this book.
• To Shield the Queen, by Fiona Buckley. Finally a return to historical fiction. This one takes place in Elizabethan England. This is book one Buckley’s Ursula Blanchard series. I enjoyed the book, but I’m not sure I love the main character. I’m gonna give Book Two a go and see what I think afterward.
• My Lady of Cleves by Margaret Campbell Barnes. I enjoyed the historical fiction on Anne of Cleves. She’s a fascinating character who managed to survive and thrive in Tudor England. The author does a good job of capturing Anne’s vulnerability and her strength. My only complaint is the author relies on some old tropes about Anne of Cleves appearance and weight. I don’t think she was built like a “Flemish mare” as Henry the VIII put it.
• Blood and Roses: One Family’s Struggle and Triumph During the Tumultuous War of the Roses, by Helen Castor. Castor’s book is based on the Paston letters, which is the largest collection of letters from 15th-century England. Caston uses the Paston letters to describe the Paston family’s experience in post-Black Death England and throughout the War of the Roses. So far it’s super interesting. I just started it on Sunday, so stay tuned.

I know what you’re thinking. I am a huge nerd, but hey at least I’m consistent. Truly, it’s been fascinating the experiences of powerful women from the past. Some had a lot of agency and power, while others were silenced. A lot also died in childbirth despite having the best medical care in the land. I’m grateful to live in a time where things like the bubonic plague won’t wipe out half the population.

How would you improve your community?

I would put an immediate moratorium on 55+ communities. They’ve taken over our area and it’s terrible. Unfortunately, the people who move into them tend to be exceedingly rude, obtuse, and terrible at driving.