Royal Wedding Primer: 7 Enlightening British Books (PHOTOS)

Can't tell a Duchess from a dustman? A banger from a biscuit? With the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton just two weeks away, it's a good thing blogger Amy Dawson contributed the following book list to Flashlight Worthy Book Recommendations to help you prepare.

What? You've had it to here with the Royal Wedding? Then skip the books below and try one of my 425 other lists of book recommendations. I promise you, pretty much every one of them will keep you up past your bedtime.

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"The Distant Hours" by Kate Morton

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The ingredients: A spooky castle in the English countryside. An eccentric old lady still mourning the lover she lost circa WWII. A modern-day protagonist you hope has the sense to not get killed by the crazy old lady still living in the creepy castle. Alternating between the 1940s and 1990s, "The Distant Hours" tells the story of three grown sisters living alone in the crumbling Middlehurst Castle. Edie, our heroine, discovers a long-lost letter nearly 50 years after her mother Meredith was evacuated to Middlehurst during WWII -- and discovers the three sisters still living in the dilapidated castle. The result: as Edie starts unraveling this spooky mystery tinged with British history and modern British sensibilities, you dive into this book and won't come up for air until you know how it ends.

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The ingredients: A spooky castle in the English countryside. An eccentric old lady still mourning the lover she lost circa WWII. A modern-day protagonist you hope has the sense to not get killed by the crazy old lady still living in the creepy castle.

Alternating between the 1940s and 1990s, "The Distant Hours" tells the story of three grown sisters living alone in the crumbling Middlehurst Castle. Edie, our heroine, discovers a long-lost letter nearly 50 years after her mother Meredith was evacuated to Middlehurst during WWII -- and discovers the three sisters still living in the dilapidated castle.

The result: as Edie starts unraveling this spooky mystery tinged with British history and modern British sensibilities, you dive into this book and won't come up for air until you know how it ends.

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This British Read

Rank #2  |  Average: 4

I will NOT be reading this Dying to read this!

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Comments

[UKLib]

04:31 PM on 04/18/2011

Let's all admit it, we amire them and their wedding will be more important to us than our own or our children's.

[whatwasthat]

04:19 PM on 04/18/2011

Anyone who reads/buys these books needs to check in at a mental health facility.

[wolfiegirl]

07:43 PM on 04/18/2011

But I was planning on reading all of them before the big day!

[CynicalDog]

07:34 AM on 04/27/2011

I read "Endurance" a few years ago when I was on a "non-fiction adventure" kick, and it was an incredible book. It's stuck with me ever since, and I've recommended it to many people; it will definitely put everyday problems into proper perspective (like when I whine about being cold because the outdoor temperature has dropped below 50 degrees). I wouldn't recommend it on the basis of it somehow relating to the royal wedding, but I'd recommend it as an example of perseverance, ingenuity, and (no pun intended), endurance.

[gutenmorgen]

04:07 PM on 04/18/2011

My advice: during the time of TV presentation go to a library/book store and read or a restaurant for a good, long meal.

[agness nutter]

03:47 PM on 04/18/2011

I think it must be impossible for Americans to understand how long the rest of the world has endured having American events, politics, sport, etc, "shoved down our throats" by your networks that dominate the airwaves, export American culture, and make considerable profit in our countries. It's quite a pleasant feeling to see the glass slipper on the other foot for a change.

Also - this post is about book recommendations to enable one to educate oneself. All things considered - ha.

[wolfiegirl]

07:43 PM on 04/18/2011

Oh.

[Duppy]

02:47 PM on 04/18/2011

By the time this wedding is over, I would have sewn my eyes and ears shut. I wish the media would get it that MOST OF US DO NOT CARE ABOUT THESE PEOPLE !

[Rubyfoo]

02:36 PM on 04/18/2011

Thanks, I was all atwitter, knowing that I was unprepared for this superlative event. Must brush up quickly now. Off to Amazon. Pip, pip, carry on.

[agness nutter]

03:55 PM on 04/18/2011

Not to worry. Pippa passes.

[agness nutter]

02:34 PM on 04/18/2011

Ahead of any of these, I'd recommend Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall, a fictionalized account of the rise of Thomas Cromwell, who steered Henry VIII through his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, marriage to Anne Boleyn, the break with Rome and establishment of the Church of England. It's brilliant. It won her the Man Booker, the National Book Circle Critics' Award and leaves you anxious to read the promised sequel. It's very funny in places and makes Cromwell a sympathetic figure, no small feat.

Second to that is Remains of the Day (also a Man Booker winner) by Kazuo Ishiguro. It recounts a period in the life of an English butler in service to a pro-German English lord proir to WWII and deals with themes of dignity, social class, loyalty, etc.. It was made into an Academy Award-nominated film with Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson.

Of course if you're just here to whine about having things shoved down your throat, denounce Britain, or can't think why anyone would be interested in a world event that doesn't happen to interest you, then, don't trouble yourself.

[wolfiegirl]

07:44 PM on 04/18/2011

I think Americans should just skip to DVD and rent Ab Fab, first and second seasons. That's BRITAIN to me!

[agness nutter]

08:03 PM on 04/18/2011

Well - if you're going the TV route, there is a whole world of fabulousness, including Ab Fab. Did you ever see Green Wing?

[geo999]

02:31 PM on 04/18/2011

Gee, it hadn't occurred to me that I needed to "prep" for the royal wedding. Hope I don't fall behind.

When is it, anyway? I need to buy a big screen t.v..

[mcnote5150]

02:26 PM on 04/18/2011

Don't buy the hype. Feudalism is so 12th century. It a tourist trap. Hey it sells souvenirs.

[mslovey]

02:18 PM on 04/18/2011

Yawn! The obsession with these people and their wedding makes me think that some people do not value their own lives and therefore worship and fuss over others. Sometimes I wonder if anyone actually realize that these people are just human beings and nothing special.

[oastiegreene]

02:18 PM on 04/18/2011

Didn't we fight a two wars to free ourselves of the British rule and their royality?

[thebigbike]

02:14 PM on 04/18/2011

Telling a Duchess from a dustman? well, a dustman performs a socially necessary task.

[VOTER]

02:05 PM on 04/18/2011

I'm getting my British fun reading Laurie R. King's novels. Her novels continue the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, retired, beginning in 1915. Fantastic writing and great reads for any Holmes fans.

[MsNatTurner]

01:42 PM on 04/18/2011

i talked to about 40 different people over the weekend. they range in age from 17 to 70, with wealth distribution, education, and interests that are just as varied. no one. NO ONE. brought up this wedding.

[DJlaysitup]

04:25 PM on 04/18/2011

Well they better get busy! To be fair...I've not kept up on the wedding the way I should either (sheepish look). Just like the old college days I'll probably end up cramming at the last minute - trying to keep the Dukes and Earls straight. Between the Royal wedding and Farmville I'm swamped. (hope my kids understand).

[lastpost]

11:57 AM on 04/18/2011

Know The Difference Between A Duchess And A Dustman:
Is it that if Wills was a dustman carrying his bride over the threshold, he’d probably drop bits of her all the way up the path.