Queen Christina Books

I was familiar with the legend of Grace O'Malley, but Christina Bauer puts a fun twist on the story in her "Pirate Queen". It's a fascinating tale of one young woman's personal voyage of self-discovery, with her burgeoning time-traveling power standing in as a metaphor for the struggle everyone faces when we transform from kids into grown-ups. My 14-year old niece loved the book (she has an annoying little brother just like Timewalking heroine Jessica Ross); her mom loved Bauer's emphasis on kids' -- especially girls' -- need to build self-reliance and self-esteem; my 13-year old nephew loved the action... lots of action! That makes "Pirate Queen" a fast, exciting read. "Pirate Queen" is an interesting counterpoint to "Harry Potter" in that Harry seldom faces the consequences of his actions, instead getting a free pass from higher-ups sympathetic to his plight. Nice and neat, but not true-to-life. Jessica Ross travels the difficult road to finding herself mostly alone, and we all get to enjoy the journey with her. It's a trip well worth taking!

A friend recommended this book for my eldest daughter, and I ended up plowing through it myself (Harry Potter fan that I am, I just can't resist this genre). It's tons of fun - not a dull moment - but what I'm most excited about is the historical element. Finally, an "action adventure" for girls - and I don't mean a sexy superhero! The book is based on a REAL 16th century pirate queen named Grace O'Malley who apparently ruled the high seas near Ireland but whose name does not appear in the history books (which are not dominated by powerful female leaders in any event). That said, there is enough fantasy and drama to keep the boys fully engaged, too. A refreshing choice - I highly recommend it.

The first time I sat down to read this book, I only planned to read the first couple of chapters. The next thing I knew it was after midnight and I was one-quarter of the way through. The story is about this girl named Jess. She's an American teenager traveling in Ireland when she starts dreaming about a ghostly pirate queen named Grace O'Malley (who's actually a real-life Irish pirate queen from the 1500's.) Jess says she'll help Grace "find her treasure" and then she starts to travel through time to relive different things from Grace's life, like sea b! attles, secret weddings and castle seiges. I don't want to spoil all the surprises, but the book is a real page-turner, especially when Jess starts to find out about the secret society of Timewalkers. I think my favorite character in the book is Jess's little brother and master prankster Jake. It's worth reading the book just to find out what he'll do next.

This is one of the best books on Boudica yet, and if you only read one, this should be the one you read. There is relatively little known about the woman that has become so important in some many ways to so many segments of society, and what is "known" should be treated with caution. Hingley and Unwin do an excellent job of showing what we do know, what we don't know, and what we might know but should think critically about in the context of the story of Boudica. They manage to create an interesting story without compromising on the evidence, avoiding what so many do when they say all the right things about biased sources and then mostly ignore what they just said and relate what those sources say as fact. Instead, Hingley and Unwin weave the critical assessment of both written and archaeological courses into their discussion in a way that keep it relevant to the story they tell. This story is given substance by the up-to-date discussion of current archaeological research on the period, which provides as useful review for professionals and interested others alike. The second half of the book was also interesting, providing a review of the ways in which "Boudica" became transformed into "Boadicea", the cultural icon variously of the right, the left, and the centre. This is far more standard in this type of literature, but nonetheless valuable in terms of what it brings to the table.
Probably most importantly, they manage to do all this in a highly readable fashion. Tackling the deconstruction of assumptions of Roman superiority, the inevitability of Romanization, and the uncritical use of written sources can often get mired down in jargon and so sail beyond what most people understand or care about. However, this book does it in a way that is both accessible and convincing. Nice job all around!

This book could not be given enough stars. It takes a fascinating episode in history, the revolt of the Queen of the Iceni of Britain in AD 60-61, and looks at it from historical, archaeological, literary, and mythical points of view. It shows how Boudica has went from simply the best-remembered of many contemporary British female warlords to variously being portrayed as a sadistic villian, a feminist hero, and a champion of British nationalism and politics. Overall, the book examines the real Boudica's role in history and her subsequent impact on modern Britain in a manner that is both informative and enjoyable to read. It is a fine source on Queen Boudica, the Celtic 'Woman of Victory' from every perspective!

I am biased, because Charles Baillairge', the subject is my great-grandfather; however, he is truly a fascinating man. The book focuses on his life's work of engineering and architecture, and is well researched. The book contains several illustrations. Recommended reading for those interesed in these fields, or for those interested in the history of quebec city.

I am doing my undergraduate research on this woman, and I found this book to be extremely helpful. I loved reading every word and I couldn't put it down. The more I learned about this fantastic, bizarre woman in history, the more I wanted to know. Extensively researched with all of the major texts (as far as I can tell), its most definately an entertaining and informative book. Kudos to this first-time author!

Masson is an excellent biographer, and few subjects are as generous to the biographer as the strange story of Christina's life. Born the only child of the legendary Gustavus Adolphus, who was killed fighting the Thirty Years' War, she was raised under the tutorship of Axel Oxenstierna for much of her childhood. Upon reaching her majority she reigned only briefly, not before hosting some of the brilliant minds in Europe at her palace in Stockholm (including the unfortunate Descartes, who promptly died upon his arrival in the icy north). But, paradoxically, her only goal as Queen was to plan her abdication, which she did meticulously. Upon fleeing Sweden she embraced French and Italian culture, converted to Catholicism, and had and alleged affair with a Cardinal. (She also had several probable homosexual relationship with the women surrounding her). A flamboyant, baffling woman emerges from this spectacular life tale.

This book is a warm and loving coming of age romance novel about a little girl born to the harsh, puritanical plains of Kansas in the mid-twentieth century. It chronicles the changes she goes through adapting from oppression and extreme poverty while concentrating on the well-being of her own family as it develops. Along the way she meets several fascinating men, but the story does not dwell on all the sordid details of this, rather the focus is more on the conflicts these relationships cause and her own moral dilemma in dealing with them. It is charming and engaging; very hard to put down once you start, but lengthy enough for the vivid descriptions of a Very Big World as seen from the eyes of a smart and determined girl. I loved it.

this was my favorite book in the series. I love the idea of a girl king, and Kristina always stands up for herself. this was a wonderful book, and i highly recommend it. Ant to Beatrice D: I'm sorry if you didn't like the part where the mother cries. You can't change history.

My two girls have read just about all the princess diaries in this series now (and Ive dipped into them too) and this must be the best of the lot. And they're all pretty good. Yes, Christina was named king, which signified that she had power, not that there was any confusion about her gender. Quite a remarkable, real person, and not someone I'd ever heard of before.

A good thing about these books is that they deal with the real concerns and pleasures of girls of this age, princesses included, as well as the situations only princesses face. And they are all based on people who were historically real, and are well researched as far as we can tell - although one of my daughters tells me there was a tiny gaffe in the one on Elizabeth (who became Elizabeth the first of England), where she was 11 at the beginning of the book although historically she hadn't had her 11th birthday yet. But she says this is not a problem! She wants me to say that she loves them so much, she wants to write her own princess diary book.

I think that this was the best one out of all of the Royal Diary seris. I seriously could not put it down when I had too.

Carolyn Mayer, has nicely put up the picture of a girl who wants to be King of her country, not Queen!Kristina, is under her beloved aunt's care, due to her original mother's bad care, and mistreatment she had set upon Kristina.Kristina, was meant to be a boy, was thought to be a boy, until, her aunt took her naked and showed her parents her true gender.Due to this, Kristina's mother decided to make poor Kristina's life a misery,even though her father rejoiced and nicknamed her the girl king!

Kristina makes many friends, all boys, and learn to grow up like a boy.She surveys the prisoners of the palace, and surveys her friends changing, as they consider the beautiful princess as their future wife!Carolyn Meyer has created a beautiful character and a good book, worthy of the Royal Diary series.All fans should consider reading this book, it's really worth your precious reading time!

This book is really, really good.I really enjoyed it.This book is about Kristina,princess of Sweden.Kristina is a strong-minded character in this book who wants to follow the moral of Queen Elizabeth,to never marry.Kristina,though a girl enjoys the life of a boy.After one of her friend's death.Kristina's life turns upside-down and is puzzled at her friend's attraction towards her.This book is one of a kind and one of the best Royal Diary Books.It's as interesting and creative as Kazunomiya,the best royal Diary book yet.I strongly reccomend this book.It unlike 'The Lady Of Palenque' has strong characters that you feel friendly with and will soon love.Some of the parts in this book are about the politics in Sweden and those parts are very interesting.Also parts in this book are touching and sad.You may not be able to get this book but try hard to get it.It's good!I couldn't put it down.

This is a wonderful book - rich in historical detail, intellectually stimulating and emotionally engaging. The author has a deep sense of humanity - and a dry sense of humour - which provides wry and insightful commentary on the mores of the time, and the excesses of the incredible Christina. The outcome is a warm and ultimately forgiving portrayal of a woman who would have been controversial in any age. The philosopher Descartes, the great artist Bernini, the composers Scarlatti and Corelli -they are among the many who have surprising walk-on roles in the drama of Christina's life.

I have read a number of Christina biographies, and am familiar with seventeeenth century Scandinavia. When I saw this book I was excited that someone, an English-speaker, had something new to say about this extraordinary queen and her times. Perhaps I was expecting too much. If a reader knows nothing about the history of the times, and is an admirer of the works of Carolly Erickson or Jean Plaidy, he will probably enjoy reading this book. Anyone who knows a bit about seventeenth century Europe, and wants some scholarly rigor to heighten and challenge his knowledge base, will probably feel -- as I did -- cheated.

One never gets the sense from this biography that Christina was a real human being. She certainly was notable and eccentric, even considering her position and unusual personality. She was an appalling individual, both by present day standards and the standards of her own time. Even so, it must be asked why she was as she was. And, further, how she was typical of and different from what might have been expected of a royal figure in Europe at that time. Did she also possess traits that might make her easier to understand as a fellow human being? I did not find these questions adequately addressed by this book. She remains a circus freak, a human deformity.

This biography might well serve as an introduction to the subject for someone who has never heard of Christina, and who is not troubled by romance-novel writing. Still, I would rather recommend Georgina Masson's or Sven Stolpe's "Queen Christina" to such a reader.

In any event, it is heartening to see Scandinavian history being brought to an English-reading public. Personally, I am still waiting for a satisfactory biography of this troubling figure.

Unfortunately, there was a lot of Swedish history to slog through at first. When I finally got to Christina's misadventures, things picked up. But this was not a really compelling biography--I kept counting how many pages I had left til the end. If you want a biography you can't put down, go read "A Million Little Pieces" by James Frey.

While Buckley has admirably and extensively researched and detailed her portrait of Europe in the 1600's, her characterizations of Christina of Sweden are irritatingly judgemental and peevish. If you are looking for a curmudgeonly psuedoanalysis of the extraordinary Queen, you will be happy. If you are looking for an impartial biography or an exciting story, you won't find it here. Buckley cobbles the flow of her own narrative by nitpicking Christina's motivations at every turn. YAWN!

Buckley has done a wonderful job with her first book and I am hoping that others will follow. This is a well-researched and well-documented biography of Christina. The queen is placed within her time period and Buckley wisely refrains from enforcing a modern view on the queen's lifestyle and decisions. Instead the author leaves the reader to make up their own mind.

And excellently written work, Buckley gives those of us with little knowledge of seventeenth century Sweden a context from which to view Christina's life. And the discussion of Karl Gustav, Christina's father, the man who made Sweden a powerful military nation, is an important part of understanding Christina's idea of herself.

For a pleasurable and enlightening look at one of the many high born (I would hesitate to call Christina powerful, except in her own mind) women floating around seventeenth century Europe, this is as great place as any to start.