"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
McLeod's main contention is that the bullying criticism of their father (George V) and the icy haughtiness of their mother (Queen Mary) cruelly impaired the two brothers and ill equipped them for their future roles. The sado-masochistic relationship David (as Edward VIII was known) entered into with Wallis provided a closure for the "black, black mist" which was his inheritance, along with the throne, from his father. His crime was to put his lover before his country--romantic to a people who warmed to his common touch, heinous to a family that put monarchic duty before, well, anything. In incurring the wrath of Elizabeth, the present Queen Mother, for forcing her husband Bertie to become George VI, he effectively sealed the fate of himself and his new wife to drift the world as "personae non grata". The loyal Bertie had continued to doggedly support his older brother until he lied to him about his finances when negotiating the abdication "pay-off"; the subsequent estrangement probably owed more to unacknowledged sibling rivalry and shared stubbornness as the potential for tragedy dissipated into pettiness. McLeod's conjectures are sometimes provocative but always interesting and the verve she brings to her subject defies any weariness it may provoke. It may be a familiarly familial tale, but a good story can stand a decent retelling. --David Vincent
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
£ 8
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Book Description Condition: Good. Ships from the UK. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP38687112