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Carregando... The serpent and the moon : two rivals for the love of a Renaissance kingde Princess Michael of Kent
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Registre-se no LibraryThing tpara descobrir se gostará deste livro. Ainda não há conversas na Discussão sobre este livro. I have many issues with this “objective” view on Diane and Catherine, but there are some positive points of the book I want to highlight. First of all it has abundant and relevant illustrations as well as an excellent bibliography. There is a wealth of intriguing details, customs, and scandals, many of which probably deserve a separate look into. I thought that history regarding the reign of Francois I was needed and interesting until it stole the half of the book. My biggest complaint is not unique-- nothing that Diane did was wrong and nothing that Catherine did was right. The author simply did not treat those two characters with fairness and honesty. This preferential treatment is not only limited to Diane; everything that Francois I did was great, when he made a mistake it was his mistress who is blamed. It was fascinating to read that property confiscation from mistress of late Francois I was rightful and just in view of the fact that Diane was the one who benefited the most; while Catherine’s forceful exchange of Chenonceau for another chateau was interpreted as a lowly and hateful act. When Anne d’Etampes was promoting her family and her favorites and meddling in politics she was driven by avarice and stupidity; when Diane was doing exactly the same thing she was following her strict moral code and wisdom. Diane was the ward for the royal children and did an exceptional job, according to the Princess of Kent. She was the one who found them tutors and doctors, selected what they will learn and where they will stay, with very little say from the queen; but when they grew up to be “the worst kings of France” it was apparently Catherine’s and Henri’s fault for spoiling them too much. Every other sentence mentioned how beautiful, gracious and sincere Diane was while Catherine was ugly, fat and duplicitous. By the end of the book I really hated Diane and was cheering for Catherine. In short, The serpert and the Moon was the most unabashedly biased book I have ever read. The author painted the portrait of those two fascinatingly complicated characters in black and white while in reality they were all different shades in between. I'll be honest. I wasn't sure that I was going to be impressed by a book written by "Her Highness Princess Michael of Kent." But any thought of that dropped quickly away as I started to read. This is well-written history of a turbulent time, and the author manages to bring the characters to life on the pages. I found myself caught up in the story, and wishing more historians had Her Highness's deft touch with words... sem resenhas | adicionar uma resenha
Set in the Europe of the Renaissance and the Reformation, THE SERPENT AND THE MOON is the story of the life-long love affair between King Henri II of France and Diane de Poitiers, a woman eighteen years his senior. his birth and once widowed, succumbed to the glamorous young prince. commoner and despised foreigner who stood miserable by as Henri became Dauphin and later King, all the while growing more devoted to his famously beautiful mistress. appearing on everything from official proclamations to palace doorknobs. Diane - and Catherine's all consuming envy of her rival. THE SERPENT AND THE MOON is a fascinating love story as well as a richly woven history of an extraordinary time. Não foram encontradas descrições de bibliotecas. |
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Google Books — Carregando... GênerosClassificação decimal de Dewey (CDD)944.028History and Geography Europe France and region France Capet and Valois 987-1589 Francis I 1515-47; Henry II 1547-59 ; XVIth CenturyClassificação da Biblioteca do Congresso dos E.U.A. (LCC)AvaliaçãoMédia:
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HRH Princess Michael of Kent tells us of her ancestor, Diane de Poitiers, and her relationship with King Henri II of France. Her relationship with Henri's wife, Catherine de Medici, is also explored. The writing makes it hard to put down. Princess Michael definitely has a way with words and her style draws you in completely. It's rich in detail, and it paints a vivid picture.
The thing I didn't like about the book was the way it sort of glossed over Diane's faults. It's almost as though she didn't have any. I really enjoyed reading about life in the French court, particularly the sections that had to do with King Francois I and his wife, Queen Claude.
Great reading. ( )