Queen Victoria

Lytton Strachey wrote this biography of Queen Victoria only 20 years after she died. He was well placed in English society and knew many of the people the queen had known. He invented the form of biography we know today-the psychological profile, and he was not at all afraid to criticize his royal and aristocratic subjects. Consequently, this book provides floods of details that are not so often included in more modern biographies. I love that he begins with the death of Princess Charlotte-she was the only legitimate child of George IV and heir to the throne. She married Prince Leopold of Saxe Gotha who would become the uncle of both Victoria and Albert. Leopold and Charlotte were happy-but she and her first baby, a boy, both died in childbirth. That set off a frenzy among several of George IV's younger six living brothers-the Dukes of York and Kent especially. They were the next two in the line of succession and had never produced legitimate children. So off the dukes went to hunt down royal brides. They were married in a double ceremony but only the Duke of Kent produced a living child- that child, Victoria, became the heir to the throne. Her affection for Lord Melbourne, her dazzling relationship with Disraeli, her dislike for most of the other prime ministers, her romance with Prince Albert and boredom with their nine children, and so many other parts of her life are brought to life by this author who painted with words. It is the shortest biography about Queen Victoria but contains more than any other I have read.

I cannot praise this biography of Queen Victoria too much. Like all of Strachey's work, it is a gem of English prose style: sometimes mordant, often subtly sarcastic, but always spot on. He does in 100 pages what other biographers seem to fail to do in 1000 pages in capturing the essence of his subject's personality, the zeitgeist of the time in which they lived and so forth. His tongue in cheek description of Prince Albert's marital fidelity (all the while implying that he was gay and just not interested in women to begin with) is typical of Strachey's style and his wit. I say again, a real gem of English prose style and biographical art. A must read for anyone interested in English literature or the Victorian era in general. Also, don't miss Strachey's "Eminent Victorians." Another masterpiece.

Very interesting informative book that showed a personal side to Queen Victoria of which I was unaware. She was a controlling wife and mother but dearly loved her husband. Very well written and kept my attention. Often these older books are tiresome with the excessive descriptions that you do not see in today's literature, however, it was overall a charming read.

Lytton Strachey's elegant writing sits upon a mountain of meticulous research into old letters and historical documents. From these he distills an image of Queen Victoria at a time of Imperial Britain's golden age, as well as the royal and aristocratic nexus of England and Germany that seems so far away as to be almost another planet now. As with his other writings, he is cynical, playful, and critical, but never loses respect for his subjects.

I thought this was a wonderful biography. Strachey makes you feel as if you really knew Victoria as a person, not just a queen. Description of how her relationship with Albert changed was fascinating - as well as her relationship with Lord M and other Prime Ministers. The final chapter was exceptionally beautifully written.

you hear about her all the time but do you really know who was that woman who gave her name to a long moment of history? The book tell you everything you need to know because practically if she reigned she did not really govern. Actually it is more complicated than that. Read the book, it is short, straight to the point, no useless details, easy to read, full of informations and really do you still want to hear all the time queen Victorian, during victoria reign etc without knowing a thing about her.

When this book was about Victoria I loved it. But much of it is about the men who surrounded her. And the last few chapter, mainly about Victoria, are beautiful,almost lyrical.

A fairly good portrayal of Victoria, but spent most time on the early stages of her reign. Different tenor of the relationship between Victoria and Albert than I have seen in other publications. Portions gave more detail than necessary. It left me wanting more.

Many books have been written about Victoria over the years, but none have surpassed this one; it captures the essence of the Queen’s history, personality and family life . Immensely readable and enjoyable!

This book moved right along and opened the eyes of the reader. Victoria was true love ya a regal person that did her part Suberin. The history of Victoria was very well done and I encourage everyone interested in this period to read this book

Lytton Strachey wrote this biography of Queen Victoria only 20 years after she died. He was well placed in English society and knew many of the people the queen had known. He invented the form of biography we know today-the psychological profile, and he was not at all afraid to criticize his royal and aristocratic subjects. Consequently, this book provides floods of details that are not so often included in more modern biographies. I love that he begins with the death of Princess Charlotte-she was the only legitimate child of George IV and heir to the throne. She married Prince Leopold of Saxe Gotha who would become the uncle of both Victoria and Albert. Leopold and Charlotte were happy-but she and her first baby, a boy, both died in childbirth. That set off a frenzy among several of George IV's younger six living brothers-the Dukes of York and Kent especially. They were the next two in the line of succession and had never produced legitimate children. So off the dukes went to hunt down royal brides. They were married in a double ceremony but only the Duke of Kent produced a living child- that child, Victoria, became the heir to the throne. Her affection for Lord Melbourne, her dazzling relationship with Disraeli, her dislike for most of the other prime ministers, her romance with Prince Albert and boredom with their nine children, and so many other parts of her life are brought to life by this author who painted with words. It is the shortest biography about Queen Victoria but contains more than any other I have read.

I cannot praise this biography of Queen Victoria too much. Like all of Strachey's work, it is a gem of English prose style: sometimes mordant, often subtly sarcastic, but always spot on. He does in 100 pages what other biographers seem to fail to do in 1000 pages in capturing the essence of his subject's personality, the zeitgeist of the time in which they lived and so forth. His tongue in cheek description of Prince Albert's marital fidelity (all the while implying that he was gay and just not interested in women to begin with) is typical of Strachey's style and his wit. I say again, a real gem of English prose style and biographical art. A must read for anyone interested in English literature or the Victorian era in general. Also, don't miss Strachey's "Eminent Victorians." Another masterpiece.

Very interesting informative book that showed a personal side to Queen Victoria of which I was unaware. She was a controlling wife and mother but dearly loved her husband. Very well written and kept my attention. Often these older books are tiresome with the excessive descriptions that you do not see in today's literature, however, it was overall a charming read.

Lytton Strachey's elegant writing sits upon a mountain of meticulous research into old letters and historical documents. From these he distills an image of Queen Victoria at a time of Imperial Britain's golden age, as well as the royal and aristocratic nexus of England and Germany that seems so far away as to be almost another planet now. As with his other writings, he is cynical, playful, and critical, but never loses respect for his subjects.

I thought this was a wonderful biography. Strachey makes you feel as if you really knew Victoria as a person, not just a queen. Description of how her relationship with Albert changed was fascinating - as well as her relationship with Lord M and other Prime Ministers. The final chapter was exceptionally beautifully written.

you hear about her all the time but do you really know who was that woman who gave her name to a long moment of history? The book tell you everything you need to know because practically if she reigned she did not really govern. Actually it is more complicated than that. Read the book, it is short, straight to the point, no useless details, easy to read, full of informations and really do you still want to hear all the time queen Victorian, during victoria reign etc without knowing a thing about her.

When this book was about Victoria I loved it. But much of it is about the men who surrounded her. And the last few chapter, mainly about Victoria, are beautiful,almost lyrical.

A fairly good portrayal of Victoria, but spent most time on the early stages of her reign. Different tenor of the relationship between Victoria and Albert than I have seen in other publications. Portions gave more detail than necessary. It left me wanting more.

Many books have been written about Victoria over the years, but none have surpassed this one; it captures the essence of the Queen’s history, personality and family life . Immensely readable and enjoyable!

This book moved right along and opened the eyes of the reader. Victoria was true love ya a regal person that did her part Suberin. The history of Victoria was very well done and I encourage everyone interested in this period to read this book

I enjoyed tis book. Never knew anyone who loved her husband as much as Queen Victoria loved Prince Albert. The only thing missing in this book was more about her children.

I haven't read. Great value. Thank You Amazon and Kindle! Free

This book brings the reader to Queen Victoria,her family,her ministers,her servants and the times she reigned over. The author humanized all the participants in this all too real history play.

A very well written book. Enjoyed following Victoria in her path throughout her life. Very informative and well researched and shared.

It an easy book to read and understand and I enjoyed living the experiences as I turned each page and I would recommend it to anyone waiting to know more about what took place in the history of the world in which we live.

I got this because I’m a big “Victoria” watcher. This was nice for background for that.

An interesting book that gave me a lot of information. While watching PBS production of Victoria, I actually was able to add to the experience with knowledge gained from this book.

Lytton Strachey was a bit of a sad, mixed up and certainly misunderstood character. I wish he was able to give us more writing and scholarship of the calibre found in 'Queen Victoria'. I understand that in 'Eminent Victorians' and 'Queen Victoria' he was amongst the first to present to the world more realistic portraits of his subjects, characters who had been practically beatified during the Victorian era. Now his takes on Florence Nightingale and Queen Victoria have become, more or less, the common view of these two remarkable but also flawed women: Strachey himself is little known, but his legacy is with us still. The pace of 'Queen Victoria' is lively, the turn of phrase typically evocatively brilliant, while the rendering of such intriguing men as Albert, Disraeli and particularly (if briefly) Gladstone is a delightful addition to the penetrating and compassionate picture Strachey paints of Victoria herself: simple, dignified, devoted, passionate and eternal. A lovely book.

I used this to great advantage while watching the current PBS Victoria series.

Great!

Not a textbook, but plenty of information. An easy read, and very much in line with what I had read about this monarch in the past.

This is a nice biography of the English Queen. It does a nice job of setting up her early life (using her diary entries), her sometimes difficult relations with the public and her family. It was very entertaining, not massive at 153 pages, and well worth picking up this free copy.

It is nice to be able to find literature on subjects you are interested. Love my Amazon Prime. Jamie Raye

with more emphasis on the serious political and constitutional questions of the time than some more modern books, and without silly attempts to titillate with hints of sexual and romantic scandals.

I enjoyed comparing this old biography to a recent one of Queen Victoria. The process was fascinating.

I have always been fascinated with the English royalty, and the general population. I guess because my ancestors are from Britain. This book is a little hard to follow at times, but overall, it is a very good history of Queen Victoria and her life. I also bought the illustrated version, but it is basically the same with a few pictures. It was very enlightening to find out how Prince Albert affected Victoria's life. She was quite a person, and she and Albert made dramatic changes into the monarchy by being very good people. One of Victoria's uncles tried to have her killed, but after that the power killings pretty much stopped. And now, the British people have monarchs that do no harm. I do recommend this book to anyone interested in this vivacious little queen.

I have not finished reading it yet, but very impressed so far.

This book is the size of a large magazine. Very unusual and hard for me to read.

This is the classic, if occasionally flawed, story of the Queen Empress and her times and a great starting point as Lytton Strachey is an excellent story teller.

Beautifully and concisely written

the narrative is very pleasing. Strachey has of course proven his worth ... . I got a real feeling of who Queen Victoria was, her character, her mariage and how "court" worked.

Very good book. I did not know much about Victoria besides what was in the movie "The Young Victoria" and I was curious about her. I learned alot about Victoria, Albert and England and the world during the Victorian age. I totally enjoyed reading the book and enjoyed the way the author wrote the book. I must admit I wanted to read more about John Brown but he was only mentioned. I recommend this book to anyone that wants to learn more about Victoria, the Royalty, England and its Government, and basic world history that England helped to change during the 1800s.

This is one of the better books written about Queen Victoria. I would highly recommend it, if you are into the Victorian Era.

Read long ago in hardcover, great to reread and E-read for free!

First read in high school 75 years ago and still a treasure of history.

Great story, beautifully written. Realy enjoyed it, and learned some things which is always a plusl

None

I went into this book after watching most of the films about these two interesting humans. I am English, a romantic like the Queen so naturally I enjoyed her in this work by an English author. Being English by heritage with a great-great GM right off the "boat" as they say, the in depth details were enormously exciting and seeing the many reference volumes; I knew he was getting the real scoop from history and not from gossip or plain fancy. It made me want to own everything volume about her and also of "them" but money is an object so I have to stay with freebies. This is a "must read" for anyone who really wants a true depiction of her life in the Royal Court leading up to and beyond the Victorian Era. So, for the money, I recommend this e-read to anyone interested in a none sensational account without the sexual exploits of the Court and of Prince Eddy also know as Bertie. I know him to have been a scoundrel but also not knowing that much about these royals after 1901 other than the four kings that lead up to Q. Elizabeth II or Q. Bess, I hesitate to say more and so won't. There are so many other books I want to read but time won't allow. This one was enough to whet my whistle for her Highland Journals and letters to her Minister's which I bought here too with pictures of her galore and most of those closest to her. I love all the illustrated books although I would have preferred her picture on the cover to have been a young Vic not an old Dowager. She isn't attractive in the slightest and this settled it as she was a very homely Queen. I love her with all she was and wasn't.

Easy read and captures you from line 1

Writing style is somewhat dated, but it has interesting content. I read it as an introduction to Edward VII. It describes her family well.

Great Kindle book !! ----------- Great Job !!!

Great book

a good book for the History of Queen Victoria

Interesting and thought provoking.

Good

The life of a great queen, in a great era for Great Britain.

First read this in college, decades ago. It's still a very good read. Strachey invented the 'personal' biography, so you get a good sense of the woman herself and not just the politics of the era.

Cn there be twists in a biography? Since my interest in Queen Victoria was aroused by the film The Young Victoria, I had only a "dates and places" knowledge of the long-ruling queen. The book is beautifully written, and Strachey devotes attention to both Victoria and Albert, their educations and interests. So, yes there are twists of interpretation, it's a well researched work divided into periods of the queen's life, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

As a history, this isn't what we look for now. More is known about Victoria, and better histories exist. But the writing is worth the challenge of reading past the period assumptions, and even the flaws in the digitization of the text itself. This version isn't perfect, as several sections have issues with formatting and font. But all of the text is readable, and as the book itself is short, it's not as frustrating as it might otherwise be.

Great seller...as advertised

I am disappointed with this book. I was expecting more about her life and what I got was a minute history of the government and their problems. I don't think this for lack of reference because the book mentions that she kept a detailed daily diary. I think I have so far learned more about Prince Albert.

Very informative

Enjoyed the little details that others biographies omit, and found it quite unputdownable at times.

I had expected this free e-book to be a bit on the dry side. Although it was bit boring at times, most of it was fascinating and quite engaging. More than anything, the love between Victoria and Albert touched my heart.

This is a great for basic history. No to detailed on her personal life but worth the read for historic information.

After watching the movie Young Victoria I felt that I wanted to know more about Queen Victoria, and also the accuracy of the movie. This biography was interesting and reassured me that most of the movie is based on some kind of fact, even if the order of events and some other facts differ. Worth reading, but not the kind of book you can't put down.

Hey, it Lytton Strachey. How can it be other than well-researched and well-written? Do remember that Mr. Strachey wrote only a couple of decades after the end of Victoria's reign/life.

Simply excellent

Just the book for rainy days or a Sunday afternoon next to the fire to be enjoyed with tea and scones and the dogs lazing about. A well written and enjoyable and well researched account of Victoria,s life and insight into Albert's role as her husband and Consort

The author style of writing was not what I expected. I was only able to read through about of the book. It did not keep my interest about Queen Victoria

Not what I was expecting. This is more like a textbook for a college level English course. I couldn't get past the first few pages.

I found the book too detailed. I wanted more of a story without having the need to look up so many words!

Very dated, at times racist and sexist. The author seems to care more about the men around Victoria rather than Victoria herself. I got tired of reading about Stockmar and Palmerston.

This book was awesome until I was half way through and the printing was messed up, the last half of the book couldn't be read.

The book was well written, but it was called "Queen Victoria" and, oddly, I expected it to be about the Queen! Instead, it focused more on Albert. That was interesting enough, but it wasn't what I wanted to read about! Since she kept diaries all of her life, there must be loads of material on her.

Naturally a very biased rendition by a man especially chosen for a special task but interesting nevertheless.

Have found out recently that some of the information in this book is somewhat inaccurate..... but, it was free

Stylish, dated, brief, conventional, a suitable introduction to the subject.

Some interesting historical tidbits, but nothing too earth shattering.

An ok story

Crazy old Victoria, up until and shortly after Albert's death. Her madness peaked in the years following as she carried on with John Brown and then her Indian servant to undignified degrees and did almost nothing to show herself as monarch. If indeed she met up with Albert in the next world, as she so fervently believed, I cannot imagine he would even speak to her, so disgusted would he have been at her hiding away huddled in black and self-pity for forty years. She truly lost her mind and her selfishness grew to epic proportions, something good Albert had always labored to keep in check. She claimed she would devote her life to doing as he would have wishes, while doing exactly the opposite, neglecting her duties and taking more than half the year as vacation at Balmoral or on the continent. A kind of brief yet thorough telling of the first 45 or so years of her life.

I didn't like this book at all. Too wordy and boring for my taste. Plus there were no pictures to enjoy. Couldn't even finish it. Sorry.

I've seen only 2 episodes. My opinion may/probably will change. For now i'm giving it the benefit of doubt.

I have read better versions of her life story. The book delt mostly with her husband until towards the end.

was this book written in 1837?

As a student of history, Queen Victoria has always fascinated me, because with her long reign, the leader of Britain at its largest point, her nine children and multitudes of grand and great-grand children, it is difficult to find a corner of the world which she didn’t influence. Victoria was conceived specifically for political purposes. Her father, the Duke of Kent, married a young widow for the express purpose of producing an heir before his brothers could do so. Growing up, she knew that she was of aristocratic birth, but her mother, in an attempt to keep her from being spoiled, hid from her how close she was to the throne. By the time the truth was revealed to her in her early teens, Victoria was well on her way to becoming an intelligent, pious and poised young woman. In 1837, at the age of eighteen, Victoria inherited the throne, which she held until her death in 1901. During her reign, the British Empire was in its Golden Age. British innovation and technology ushered the world into the modern era. One of the most interesting things that I learned in this book was Albert’s role, not just as Victoria’s husband, but also as a co-ruler. The pair perfectly complimented each other. Where Victoria was social, a natural diplomat, Albert was detail oriented and serious. For twenty years, Albert, an intelligent and brilliant strategist, dedicated himself morning to night in the work of running a kingdom. He literally worked himself to an early death (he died at age 42), but the British people of the time never truly accepted him. As a German prince, he was a foreigner. His anti-social ways did not ingratiate him to the aristocracy. But for as much as the people didn’t care for him, Albert made his mark on the empire by putting its needs and its people before himself. I view the “love story” of Victoria and Albert as a tragic one. Although it basically had been an arranged marriage (they had a choice, but it was limited), Victoria loved him with her whole heart—so much so that after his death, she mourned him for the rest of her long life. They had nine children together and had a perfect partnership. Even so, while Albert cared for her as a dear friend and respected her for her mind, he never truly loved her. In fact, Albert never really achieved any sort of personal happiness. His death had as much to do with his melancholy attitude as it did with illness. As biographies go, I really enjoyed this one. It made me think. My biggest problem with the book is that I was reading it in electronic format and as it is with many public domain books, there were a lot of formatting errors. While I was able to figure out what the author was trying to say, it was visually annoying. Overall, I give Queen Victoria… Plot – 3 ½ bookmarks (while interesting, it was a bit slow in spots) Love Story – 4 bookmarks (although tragic) Historical Relevance – 5 bookmarks (to understand Victoria & the Victorian Age is to understand the world we live in today) Dream Cast (Otherwise known as who I pictured while reading) – I saw the movie Young Victoria a while back, starring Emily Blunt as Victoria and Rupert Friend as Albert. These are who I had in mind for the first half of the book. After Albert’s death I pictured the actual Queen Victoria with her heavy black mourning clothes.

eBook downloaded free from Gutenberg. Yet another biography, focusing on her political as well as personal activities. I expected to be bored by this book, as I'm very familiar with the queen's life and unimpressed with what I know of the author. But he held me entranced all the way through, both with information I didn't already have, including quotes from her journals, and cogent analysis of the effect she had on the political activity of the time (and vice versa). The style is more than a bit dated, and he downplays some of the controversial aspects of her life; for example, he portrays her relationship with John Brown as simply that of mistress to devoted servant. But the sheer readability, combined with the perceptive insights into the life of a complicated woman, made this book well worth my time.

This author has an excellent vocabulary. Great movement to keep the events captivating. I thoroughly enjoyed this particular account of Queen Victoria's life. I also would have liked some royal transition to her son, but that is further reading.

Under the gushing prose there is an under current of coded observations. Albert never looked at another woman, perhaps he was looking elsewhere. Victoria, perhaps not a legitimate child, not interested in her own children, and unable to control her temper. Politicians working to flatter and apease the Queen while concealing their own aims. There's certainly another story here if you dig deep enough.

I read Eminent Victorians many years ago but have never read anything else by Lytton Strachey. Having recently read A N Wilson's biography of Queen Victoria I was interested to read this biography which is from another era and takes a wholly different approach. The style is the same I remember from Eminent Victorians - waspish, but eloquent. This is not an evenly paced account of the subject's life and times. Strachey has chosen the aspects which suit his perspective, and he was no admirer of royalty. Still, it is a very readable book and spiced up with gossip and insinuation. Even with Strachey's acerbic tone Victoria is not ridiculed or belittled. She is presented as a flawed but not unattractive person but you can imagine how controversial this book was when it first appeared a few years after this revered monarch's death. Other biographies may provide more facts and analysis but few are as stylishly written. Inevitably it's a little dated now so I've opted for four stars.

Queen Victoria has always fascinated me. For any young girl to suddenly become Queeen and assume so much authority after years of repression creates an interesting psychological profile to contemplate. The queen was a mass of contradictions. History remembers her as an arch prude yet her deeply intense and physical love for her 'beloved Albert' shows a passionate personality who enjoyed her love life to the full. Her imperiousness and her sense of herself as Queen affected all who came in contact with her and woe betide anyone who failed to show the correct degree of deference. Yet a peasant woman on the Balmoral estate who was regularly visited by the Queen on her scottish holidays recalled her as a 'homely wee body' and a simple and - dare i say it - almost humble personality. Her self indulgence, her willfulness and selfishness are her least endearing qualities. She was a determined getter of her own way and everything revolved around her will and her wishes. She would think nothing of summoning a busy government minister 600 miles to Balmoral for a 10 minute audience and not even consider the inconvienience. Her relationship with her children reflected her selfishness and she was dominating to the point of cruelty. This biography by Lytton Strachey is well written but lacks the insight of later biographies but is non the less an interesting account of the Queens personality and her times. For those interested I would suggest reading 'Victoria R I' by Elizabeth Longford which is written with great insight and humour and one of the most compelling autobiographies I have ever read

Lytton Strachey's biography of Queen Victoria won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for its psychological insight, accuracy and wit. Although one of the first to be written about Victoria, and more reverent and approving than some more modern ones, it offers a sympathetic and affectionate portrait of a complex woman. Strachey, a member of the Bloomsbury group and married to the poet Dora Carrington, had an unusual life of his own. He was an intellectual and although this biography is (obviously) a product of its time, it was innovative and won great admiration. It is a relatively easy and very interesting read, leaving one with a better understanding, not only of why she behaved as she did, for good and ill, but of the attitudes of the Victorian era. Strachey is not interested in the wider politics of the age, nor much interested in Victoria's life after Albert's death, but his account of her accession and her prime is fascinating.

Parts of the book I found interesting but on the whole it contained a lot of detail which was for me unnecessary. Basically Victoria was a product of her time far removed from today's world. The book appears to show her as a self-indulgent woman who was extremely susceptible to flattery. I found little to admire in her character.particularly during her long spell of isolated widowhood.

I found this quite light to read. Enjoyable. I had downloaded it after watching Victoria on ITV and wanted to check some facts. Not best book I have read on her but if you just want an outline of her life it is worth a read.

A book of facts and fancies, goes lightly on the queen and her husband Albert when both were really disfunctional slightly deranged personalities. Interest in book though

Didn't like it at all. Wasn't in any way compelling, and I'm certain her life was

I wanted to know more about Victoria and this book was perfect for that. Overally flowery in its complicated use of the English language as it is, having a dictionary function on the kindle is an essential reading companion to enjoy this book.

I enjoyed this book immensely, I read it after watching a programme about Queen Victoria and how she was with her children, I was sure that was not the whole story and whilst this book doesn't cover her children/parenting skills very much nor her relationship with Mr Brown, what it does do is explain her as a person which was an eye opener. I would recommend it.

I found this book REALLY interesting because the 'inside information' written about the young Princess who later became the Queen, could only have come from someone who had privileged information. So did the author (Mr Giles Lytton Strachey) have that much access to the Princess/Queen (he doesn't say) - if not, who did?

Failed to download to my device.

The book comes up with some interesting information now and again. The only downside is that it was written a long time ago, so the style of writing is old fashioned.

I really enjoyed reading this.

A very good read and a good insight into Victoria's regin.

The finest biography of Queen Victoria that I have read to date. It looks at all aspects of her life and places it in the context of contemporary domestic and international affairs.

Very detailed and interesting and I discovered things I didn't know about Queen Victoria. My one criticism is that is was too long! Would appeal to anyone interested in the history of the royal family.

Not too bad, but too much politics for my liking, would have liked to read more about the queen and her family.

This one is a little bit heavy, but quite interesting within its Victorian limits. You get the feeling that the author is playing very safe and recording only well knownfacts. Quite useful however.

loved it,very interesting.

Very informative and very amusing .....

If you are looking for a book about the private lfe of Queen Victoria this is good, and gives some human insight into the person, rather than the Queen. A lot of the book is about Prince Albert, and some of the language used can be a little hard to understand, but I found it difficult to put down at times.

Most impressive,.I cannot recommend this book too highly.

This book told me more about Prince Albert,Prime Ministers and earlier Sovereign s than it did about Queen Victoria.Somewhat disappointing.

This book tells the story of Victoria right from her birth onwards, i learned a lot of thing that i did not know about her life and the way she was brought up in the early years. a really good read.

love it

I have just discovered Lytton Strachey and I love his writing. This is a short whizz through Victoria's life and quite a page turner.

An extensive account of the life of Queen Victoria. At times, it was too intense with complex facts simplified too quickly, but overall it was excellent.

a well written biography

History. I love it.

Absolutely fascinating, I learned so many things from reading this book! Although uninspiring to look at, I felt it gave me a valuable insight into the life of a great Queen.

Queen Victoria's life broken down into readable bits, If you are interested in the royal family, history or this period of british history, you might enjoy this book.

Nice

Brilliant!

Thanks very much. Just what I expected and a good price too, David.

Very good read describing her life and that of her family.

Find Royal reading fascinating, also her childrens lives and the merging of European Royal households. Enjoyable reading.

A more contemporary account - glosses over Bertie's "indiscretion" and is rather judgemental but gives lots of insight into how Victoria thought and acted the way she did.

gr8

another great book to have .

very good book

I enjoyed this book greatly and have passed it on to my family who have all said the same about it.

Enjoyable factual book

Some interesting insights but could do with a lot of editing as one could skip pages and not miss anything

Great

Just what I wanted

Lots of details that I didn't know. Very good.

Interesting

Good

Brilliant,informative and very entertaining

Do una stella non per il libro in sé, che non ho ancora finito di leggere, ma per la STAMPA AMAZON. Quando un libro non é disponibile, Amazon stampa il file e lo rilega. Il problema é che il formato del libro è assolutamente ingestibile!! Scomodissimo!!! Non tascabile e totalmente inadeguato ad essere tenuto in mano con facilità!! Va bene che l'ho ricevuto subito proprio perché stampato da amazon ma con immagine di copertina sgranata, zero margini laterali e formato ASSURDO. Sembra stato impaginato da gente che non legge mai!!! Su questo Amazon deve DAVVERO MIGLIORARE.

For the price, this book is very useful. It tells a lot on the life of the queen and many events and people in and around her life. It does exclude some noteworthy events that happened during her reign but that can be pardoned given the 166 pages of information and perspective this book gives us.

Esperaba letras más grandes.

Reasonably good insight into Victoria's life.

I adored this biography. The early years are extremely well presented and Mr Strachey leads you through the very tangled web that ended up putting Queen Victoria (just) on the throne. The early and middle parts of her life are well documented, especially in her dependence on the prime-ministers and her (in today's terms) shocking political partiality. After the death of Albert, the Prince Consort, the story runs out of steam. Mr Strachey claims there is little original material as letters were few and far between, it almost seems as if he has gor bored and tries to close the last 40 years as quickly as possible. There is almost no foreign policy discussed other than the machinations of the German princelings. No mention of the Indian Mutiny nor of British conquests elsewhere in the world. Nothing much about the Industrial Revolution. These omissions make this a good read but very far from the definitive biography.

Great Book. Provided real insight into her life.

have only just begun to read this and enjoying it so much already victoria was and is so interesting to read about and is one of the greats.

To long winded for me. I like a story that catches my attention, even though I kept on reading it never once did I feel wow this is history and very educational. I love to read how thing used to be this book was a no no for me.

Have read much better books than this.

I love all historical books and the life and reign of Victoria I find fascinating. This book is particularly good.

Thank you!

A+++ item

Great item, thanks.

Not read yet

lack of translation when another language is used waffles with trivial fact seems to tell more about Albert than Victoria