Mrs Queen Takes the Train (Hardcover)
Description
An absolute delight of a debut novel by Kuhn--author of "Reading Jackie: Her Autobiography in Books"--that wittily imagines the kerfuffle that transpires when a bored Queen Elizabeth strolls out of the palace in search of a little fun, leaving behind a desperate team of courtiers who must find the missing Windsor before a national scandal erupts.
About the Author
William Kuhn is a biographer and historian, and the author, most recently, of Reading Jackie, a look at the personality of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis through the books she chose to edit at Viking and Doubleday. He has written three previous books: Democratic Royalism; Henry and Mary Ponsonby, a double biography of two key people at the court of Queen Victoria; and The Politics of Pleasure, a life of Britain's most royalist prime minister, Benjamin Disraeli. He lives in Boston, Massachusetts. This is his first novel.
Praise for Mrs Queen Takes the Train…
âeoeYouâe(TM)ll come away thinking Her Majesty, at least this fictional one, charming, caring, thoughtful and brave. . . . A delightful escape. We can only hope there are more train rides in Her Majestyâe(TM)s future.âe
-USA Today
âeoe[A] charmer of a first novel. . . . This Elizabeth is delightful, slyly funny company. Youâe(TM)ll never look at the real one the same way again.âe
-People (3 ½ stars)
âeoePoignant and sweet, MRS QUEEN TAKES THE TRAIN is a comic study of the British class system, an unusual testament to the possibilities of friendship outside normal comfort zones and an affirmation of the humanity within all of us.âe
-Richmond Times-Dispatch
âeoeA delightful read, a bit of fiction (the train journey) set into nonfiction (everything else), and a sly look at how the monarchy is changing along withâe"or maybe two beats behindâe"the rest of Britain.âe
-Minneapolis Star Tribune
âeoeA witty, contemporary story of the Downton Abbey-esque tensions between servants and employers, the young and the old, and tradition and modernity.âe
-Glamour.com
âeoeThis book is the perfect cup of tea for the year of the Queenâe(TM)s Diamond Jubilee. Give it to lovers of all things British. Itâe(TM)s also a good bet for fans of Alexander McCall Smith.âe
-Booklist
âeoeKuhn explores not only the queenâe(TM)s inner life, but the Downtown Abbey style-tensions between servants and royals, the old guard and the new. . . . Royal watchers and students of class alike will enjoy this smart. . . tale.âe
-Publishers Weekly
âeoeKuhnâe(TM)s first novel ought to find an avid readership among the filmgoers who flocked to The Kingâe(TM)s Speech and The Queen. . . . An affectionate, sympathetic but also unstinting look at the woman inside the sovereign.âe
-Kirkus
