Now Read This: 'Victoria' by Daisy Goodwin

As those of you who follow my column know, I am partial to historical fiction, so it will be no surprise to you that this month’s column is about the book “Victoria” written by Daisy Goodwin. As luck, or timing, would have it, I read the book right before the new PBS series “Victoria” began airing. Daisy Goodwin has written a great novel about Victoria based on her extensive study of Victoria’s diaries. Goodwin has used her research to write both a book and a PBS series. As you can imagine, the series very closely follows the book.

Victoria was barely 18 when her uncle died leaving her the throne. Up to that point, she had led a very sheltered life under the control of her mother and her mother’s adviser Sir John Conroy. Conroy and Victoria’s uncle the Duke of Cumberland were eager to take over control of the crown. Though young and only 5 feet tall, Victoria is anxious to rule and finds an ally and mentor in Prime Minister Lord Melbourne, a man old enough to be her father. The book and the series lead us to believe that Victoria had a crush on Lord Melbourne, but some historical writers deny that. Once Conroy and Cumberland realize Victoria will not give in to them, they push her hard to marry a husband “who can control her.” The book ends with her choosing a husband.

The library owns a copy of the book and has a copy of the PBS series DVD on order. The library has a number of other items about Queen Victoria, including a new biography entitled “Victoria the Queen by Julia Baird,” a DVD of “The Young Victoria” and an audiobook entitled “The Queen, Her Lover, and the Most Notorious Spy in History” by Roland Perry.

If you like to read historical novels about queens, you might also enjoy Philippa Gregory’s series of novels based on the English queens. Several months ago I wrote a review of her “Taming of the Queen” novel. Her newest title is “Three Sisters, Three Queens” based on the lives of King Henry VIII’s sisters Mary and Margaret along with Katherine of Aragon. The library owns copies of that in both regular and large print and in audiobook format.

Happy reading!