The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Other Boleyn Girl
Book Review: A delightful novel
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Other Boleyn Girl" is without a doubt the most intresting, vivid, colorful and entertaining piece of historical fiction about the Tudor court that I have ever read. Philippa Gregory is my new favorite fiction author and this book is most definetly my favorite("The Constant Princess" is a close second).
The novel is narrarated by Mary Boleyn, the younger sister of Anne and often thought of as the forgotten mistress of Henry the Eighth. Throughout the novel we see Mary grow from a love struck girl in love with the attention of the King,a slave to the wishes of her family- to a strong woman who has learned that life at court will never offer her what she wants(a home, to raise her own children, a loving husband) and defies her family by choosing her own husband and in the act of throwing away fame and power she manages to save herself and her children the fate that was to befall her sister Anne(and several others but I dont want to give the story away). If you enjoy historical fiction, pick up this book and then go out and buy "The Constant Princess", "The Virgin's Lover" and "The Queen's Fool"(in that order). Im counting down the days till Gregory's next book about the Tudor court 'The Boleyn Inheritence".
Book Review: A different take on the story of Anne Boleyn
Summary: 5 Stars
While reading this book, I was never sure who the 'other Boleyn girl' actually was. At times it referred to Mary Boleyn, Anne's sister who conducted an affair with King Henry and bore him two children, and at other times it seemed to refer to Anne herself, who's driven ambition ultimately led her to the block. This is a nice twist on the title which would lead you to believe that it was only Mary who was considered beneath contempt as the other Boleyn sister's fortunes rose.
The choice of having Mary Boleyn as narrator of this story was inspired as it provides a completely different look at the complexities of court life and an intimate look at what it must have been like to be so tied to the future Queen of England even as your loyalties lay with the current Queen, Katherine of Aragon. Mary is between a rock and a hard place and her guilt and confusion come through so clearly on the pages. Katherine is portrayed sympathetically here as the cuckolded wife who must bear her husband's infidelities even as they happen right in front of her.
As she goes from being the pawn in her family's game to raise the family's name at court to being a mere lady-in-waiting to her sister who manages to usurp her position, she realizes that her ultimate dream would be to own a farm in the country and to raise her children in peace, away from the glittering, cut-throat court. As Anne finally becomes Queen of England, you get Mary's constant commentary on the familiar story of her inability to provide the King with a male heir, her frantic attempt to sustain her crown, and her eventual downfall ending with her beheading. If I didn't already have a picture of her as a selfish manipulator, I would have been absolutely infuriated by her after reading of her behavior in this book!
This is definitely a work of fiction as not much is known about Mary Boleyn, but what entertaining fiction it is! Note: It does help to have a bit of background knowledge about the major players as the names and titles can get a bit confusing.
Book Review: A different viewpoint of Anne Boleyn
Summary: 5 Stars
The story of Anne Boleyn has been told numerous times over the years in various formats, so I was intrigued by this book and discovered it is just as much Mary's story as it is Anne's. Anne Boleyn's younger sister Mary catches the eye of King Henry VIII of England at the age of 14 and, at the direction of her family, becomes the king's mistress. No matter that the girl is already married, her family sees Mary's relationship with the king as a way to advance their social status - if only Mary could bear the king a son, the family's future would be secure.
Mary bears the king a daughter and later has a son (whose parentage is, to this day, in dispute) and the king soon tires of her and turns his attention to Anne, whose story we all know from high school history classes. Yet, it was interesting to see the story told from the viewpoint of Mary in the first person, rather than a narrative or an historical book.
Sadly, Mary was the only of the three Boleyn siblings - Mary, Anne and George - who did not have a date with the executioner. She was also the only one to marry for love, and not to advance her family. This single act caused her to be disowned by her family, although it is believed she lived a happy life.
I'm a sucker for those crazy Tudors. I have read Alison Weir's "Six Wives of Henry VIII," Elizabeth I" and "The Children of Henry VIII," all of which I count among my favorite books on the Tudor period. "The Other Boleyn Girl" has joined them on that shelf.
Book Review: A diverting journey into Tudor times
Summary: 4 Stars
As both a student and teacher of history, I approached this novel with more than a little trepidation. Historical fiction is frequently a genre that takes such liberties with the history that all that is left is the fiction. The film "Elizabeth" is a case in point, where Mary Queen of Scots finds her death being depicted not as a trial and eventual execution in February 1587, but rather as a bedroom dalliance with Australian actor Geoffrey Rush. Dramatic licence is one thing, but to so distort the historical events to such a degree is too distressing, especially when many of my students having seen the film accepted this version of events as real.Philippa Gregory has done a fine job with this novel, however, by steering clear of any sensational tracks, but rather maintaining a steady and reasonable course throughout.
Based around the unfortunately sketchy character of Anne Boleyn's sister Mary, the titular "other Boleyn girl", this is a novel that captures well the flavour of the intrigues and personal ambitions of those at the court of Henry VIII. Mary, the pawn in her family's quest for rank and privilege, is promoted ruthlessly to capture Henry's eye and in time becomes his mistress. Mary bore Henry two children, a boy and a girl, before his interest waned and the Howard family instead promoted Mary's sister Anne into Henry's bed. A demoted Mary is then coerced into aiding her sister's cause at Court, all the while becoming more and more disillusioned with palace life and wanting instead to forge her own future with her children in the country.
The story keeps fairly well to the major historical events between 1521 and 1536, and the portrayal of Henry is done well, reflecting the physical and intellectual vigour of his youth, and his decline into the bloated monster he became.
A quibble is the portrayal of Anne as a calculating harpy throughout the book. One senses that Gregory wants us to suddenly feel a measure of sympathy for her as she meets her fate in the Tower. This is impossible, and as a reader one can only feel what Henry did at the time of her execution, and say "good riddance".
Over-all this is a very fine piece of historical fiction that expands on an interesting footnote in English history.
Incidentally, in a recent customer survey by New Zealand's largest bookshop chain (where I worked for five years), this novel was voted 38th favourite book of the last year.
Book Review: A fabulous must read!
Summary: 5 Stars
I couldn't put this book down, it was intoxicating! It really transports you to the court of Henry IIIX and watch out, you're in for a wild ride! I loved this fictional account of what life might have been like for Mary and Anne Boleyn. It's always a time in history that has fascinated me, and this book truly shares a captivating story of the times, the King and the Boleyn family.