The Lives of the Kings & Queens of England

In 1066 William the Conqueror captured the English throne, and since that time 39 kings and queens have reigned over the British dominions. Their lives, alliances, whims, delusions, and intrigues have had an incalculable influence on the culture, politics, and very boundaries of the entire world. From the Plantagenets to the Tudors, from the Hanovers to the Winsors, Wanda McCaddon delivers these short, straightforward biographies with proper English pride, deference, and oftentimes, a sly sense of irony. The names and dates come fast and furiously, but here are a few facts: Over half of France was in England's possession during the reign of Henry II. Richard III was the last English monarch to die on the battlefield. And, as a 19-year-old princess, Queen Elizabeth II joined the Auxiliary Transport Service as a mechanic in the final days of WWII. B.P. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine

Eight historians (including Neville Williams for the Tudors and Andrew Roberts for the Windsors) tell the story of the royal houses of England from 1066 to the present. Fraser's somewhat apologetic introduction acknowledges the limits of monarchical history, but this fascinating and mesmerizing chronology has too many colorful characters and startling reversals to ever feel limited. At last, one learns why Henry IV was Henry Bolingbroke and his son Henry V was Henry Monmouth (after the castles where they were born), who exactly Lady Jane Grey was, and why a line of German princes ended up on the English throne. McCaddon's initially harsh, schoolmarmish tone turns out to wear well, bringing vigor and continuity to what easily might have been a numbing chronology of names and centuries. In her commanding voice this unsurpassable listening experience stirs both mind and imagination. D.A.W. (c) AudioFile, Portland, Maine