Book Club

[moonandthestars]

Have they announced yet what charity or charities the proceeds are going to? And at what percent?  

[Pook]

I'm nearly halfway through it and the ridiculousness of what the royals subject the children to is even more awful than I thought!!  I know I would have not been able to accept it as a child and I would have probably spoken up for my self at a very young age!!  Harry has a lot to be proud of and the ones always judging him cannot even compare to all he has accomplished so so far!!!

[moonandthestars]

@Pook Would you give an example or two of the ridiculousness?  I'm just trying to picture what sort of things you are referring to?

[sugar plum]

I'm enjoying reading it and am about halfway through. What strikes me is the depths of PTSD he's suffered since his mum's death.

[Love to Run]

I'm on the waiting list. It's still at #1.

[icezeus]

I have not, although I am leaning towards requesting the book from my library. I need to catch up on some of my current books before placing my request. 

Out of curiosity I checked out where I would be on the list for my library. There are 25 books that they have purchased for the system, and I would be number 228.

[haddon9]

I haven't read the other answers yet but so far it's a bit boring to me.  I'm not finished and I'm up to the part where he's learning how to become a helicopter pilot in the army. 

Spare is basically about his life starting as a young child and going through school, after school (he didn't go to university) and after.

The book emphasizes his mother's death which affected him deeply and the awful paparazzi & press which was a torture for his mother, Princess Diana and continues to be so for him.

As I mentioned it's a bit boring and certainly not a page turner for me.  I can easily put it down for days at a time.

[Pook]

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@moonandthestars wrote:

@Pook Would you give an example or two of the ridiculousness?  I'm just trying to picture what sort of things you are referring to?

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If you read the book it would be quite obvious!!

The children were indoctrinated from when they were young to never show emotion in public and they were often paraded around in public - that is a huge one!!!  When  you were  the ages of William and  Harry would you have been able to not show any emotion during the death parade they were subjected to at their mother's funeral!!!!????  They also were instructed to never speak to the press without royal permission no matter how they were trashed!!  His dad was emotionally not there much and they were around nannies or a handler more than their dad or other relatives after their mother's death!!!  And I am only  about halfway through!!  While William has bought into the royal thing, I truly believe  Harry was severely emotionally affected by all that nonsense!!!  He has accomplished so much already in his life - way more than any of the other royals who strictly follow the silly protocols!!  I cannot imagine anyone existing  like that!!  

[Janey2]

I would not read it as I would believe a word. 

[Free2be]

@lil sophie  The book is very much worth the time and either the wait for the library or the cost.  I was not the least bored, in fact, I was very taken at "seeing" the various lifetime events through his boyhood eyes and on through his years of adjusting to what being the Spare caused for him, being Royal, being virtually parentless yet often needing famiial comfort and affirmation.  He had nice nannies, and a family that loved him at a distance, not the ideal way to grow up but he has managed to become his best person, best husband and father.

It isn't unusual for people to separate themselves from their family of origin in order to find happiness, his circumstances though, were, and that is what makes his story fascinating. 

People who refuse to read him because they believe they know everything about his story or don't care to know more don't know what they don't know and that's a fair choice. We each have one.  He covers his lifetime from his earliest memories, I can only share my experience having read the book that it was very interesting and I learned quite a lot about him and what living in that family was like for him.