Robert Lacey

This entertaining and well-written book givees a real feel for every day life at the turn of the first millennium. Approached with a very light touch, the authors touch on the daily life and concerns of all sections of the population, whether hand-to-mouth villagers, men and women of God, soldiers or nobility. Their day-to-day problems and joys, their concerns for the future are all touched on the give a vivid portrait of life 1000 years ago. It's not a scholarly book, but one which is easily read in the course of a day , whetting the appetite for more.… (more)

The three stars are for the information provided about Grace Kelly, which is the only reason, in my opinion, to read this one. I find this book lacking both in heart and emotional insight. Minus this, the reader feels an emotional distance from Grace, making some of her dalliances seem tawdry rather than wistful or sad.

There has yet to be a truly great bio of this lovely star whose public image of a woman lovely and kind, fiercely loyal, flawless in grace, is accurate, yet terribly incomplete. There is too much of a matter-of-fact tone to the revelations about her various affairs and life-long need for love and acceptance to give the reader anything other than a surface picture of woman behind that famous smile. It is the greatest failing of this biography.

She married a Prince to escape the stifling atmosphere of the studio system, yet found her restless spirit again stifled as her time in Monaco lengthened. Acting in front of the camera had at least given her soul an outlet, a chance to fly. Her life-long quest for praise and acceptance from her father marred her youth, her career and her private life. She hurt easily, loved hard, and needed to be loved in the same way. She settled for tender dalliances to soothe her inward unhappiness, while outwardly being exactly what the public saw her as.

Tackling this lovely woman’s inner frustration behind that million-dollar smile was either beyond this author’s ability, or he was not inclined to do so. For that reason it comes off as remote and distant, making revelations about affairs of the heart seem salacious when in fact they were sad. If you’re looking to get a three dimensional picture of Grace, you won’t find it here. Perhaps one day this fine and lovely woman will get a biography worthy of her, one with insight and understanding, one which isn't boring. This book isn’t it. Yet still, even as lacking in empathy and insight as it is, a vague portrait does appear. If I had to describe Grace Kelly, I would say this:

“Privately unhappy, trapped like a bird in a gilded cage, she sometimes escaped, finding in various arms, brief moments of love and acceptance that made the cage bearable.”

It's unfortunate this book wasn't better, and that with all the various books floating around out there, a real portrait of Grace that goes beyond the surface, and to the heart of her, does not exist.… (more)