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Summary: Mary, Queen of Scots - Girl and Queen away from home
Review: 1553, Mary Stuart, aka Mary, Queen of Scots resides in France at age eleven. She describes to her journal, the details of the French court with her four Marys, her close friends from Scotland. She details encounters with the stern Queen Catherine de Medici, the beautiful Diane de Poitiers, her friend, the sickly Dauphn who is to be her future husband, Francis, and many others. She finds conflicts with the Queen Catherine and believes that "there is no room in one country for two Queens". She misses her mother and native land of Scotland dearly. An eleven year old girl who is at times, a queen and a child. Some things conflict but she takes them introspectively. She is truly growing up as a Queen away from home. Kathryn Lasky did a great job in this portryal of the young Scottish Queen. It was very believable and convincing. She was able to weave cameos of people like Nostradamus and important historical details of things happening in England at that time. This is another great book to add to the series but I thought many details were left out in the Historical Notes and Epilogue which can be researched in more detail though. Overall, Mary, Queen of Scots, is an asute, lonely and brave young Queen in this addition to the Royal Diary Series. An enjoyable read.
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Summary: Novel about Mary Queen of Scots.
Review: Born as her father lay dying she became Queen before she was a week old. During her infancy King Henry VIII of England raided the country several times in order to kidnap the girl and secure her as a bride for his son Edward. She was sent to France by her Mother and raised as a daughter by the King. At the age of 16 she married the heir to the French throne who became King shortly thereafter. When her young husband died a year into his reign she was left a teenaged childless Queen Dowager. She returned to the land of her birth to find herself a Catholic Queen in a country in the midst of Protestant Reformation. Many of her protestant subjects feared that she would become a second 'Bloody Mary' and like her cousin Mary Tudor attempt to force her country back to the Catholic faith. Plots and rebellions against her were a persistent occurrence. Knowing herself to be in a weak position, needing to keep both her Catholic allies and her subjects contented, Mary set a policy of tolerance and moderation in religious matters. Radicals on both sides of the religious spectrum found fault with Mary's tolerance of the religious diversity in Scotland. Mary herself made matters worse by her disastrous romances. She married her cousin Henry Darnley in the hopes of strengthening her claim to the English throne. After only a few short months he began to plot against her in the hope of securing the throne of Scotland for himself. He and other Scottish nobles murdered Mary's private secretary and friend David Rizzio as she watched, helpless to intervene. When Mary was able to put down this rebellion he turned on his former allies and attempted unsuccessfully to reconcile with the Queen. In the end his erstwhile allies disgusted at his betrayal murdered him as he lay ill at his home Kirk O' Field. It is still debated how much Mary herself knew about the plans to murder her husband the Scottish king. With Darnley out of the way the remaining Scottish lords were horrified when one of their own kidnapped Mary and became her third husband. He was James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell was one of the leading suspects in the murder of Darnley. Her marriage to him cost her the love of her people, her tenuous friendship with her cousin Elizabeth I, and her catholic allies around Europe. In one short month Mary was driven from the throne, forced to abdicate in favor of her infant son and placed in captivity by the Scottish lords. Her husband escaped the country only to be taken prisoner in Denmark. Bothwell would live another eleven years in a dungeon slowly going insane. Mary was also able to escape from her prison, the castle and Lochleven, and she made her way to the English border. Mary of Scotland was the last person whom Elizabeth would wish to see in her kingdom. Viewed by many Catholics as the rightful Queen of England, Mary was a great danger to Elizabeth. Mary became Elizabeth's "guest" and spent nineteen years in captivity in her cousin's country. Since Mary was also the unacknowledged heir to the throne, her jailers were always cautious to treat her with the respect due to one so close to becomeing Queen of the land. As the years passed the captive Mary became a romantic figure to many and was able to restore the reputation lost by her marriage to Bothwell. In hopes of securing her freedom and of capturing Elizabeth's throne, Mary began to communicate clandestinely with English Catholics and her European allies. Using her claim to the English throne as leverage, she began to look for a fourth husband who would free her, overthrow Elizabeth and rule at her side. Eventually Elizabeth was forced to have Mary executed in 1587. Her execution lead Phillip of Spain to launch the armada against England in 1588. Mary was never able to sit on the throne of England as Queen. However, since 1603 all the monarchs of England have been her direct descendants. She is buried in Westminster Abbey in London, a city she never saw while alive.
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Summary: THIS IS THE BEST BOOK EVER!!!
Review: I loved this book it had alot of facts and this book helped me learn more about the princess and her life it had alot of detail and i loved the characters in it and it was cool too i loved her but i wish she ..... i cant tell you because you have to read it but too bad for her in the end it had alot of interesting facts and pictures at the end of the end.I recommend it to you. i love it!
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Summary: Mary Queen of Scots is best princess ever!
Review: I read this book back when it first came out but I cans till remember it well. Mary is the daughter of the Scottish king who died when she was less than a week old. When she was 6, her mother sent her to be educated in France, where she would also marry the French dauphin Francis. Now, she is 9, and has been living in the French court for years with her only real friends, her four Marys from Scotland. But the French court isn't everything it came out to be. Catherine de Medici hates Mary, and will stop at nothing to destroy her. Mary befriends the king's true lover, Diane de Poitiers, and Mary even gets visits from her mother eveyr once and a while! However, amny deaths come and many mysteries are solevd in this book. It is my favorite from the Royal Diaries series and I hope you enjoy it too. Kathryn Lasky brings Mary to life, although Mary seems older than 9 in her speech and knowledge, and the research shows in this book. Almsot everything is real and researched and nothing is made up. Nostramadus even makes a guest appearance in this book! I recommend this boys and girls of all ages.
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Summary: Good read
Review: Mary, queen of Scots: queen without a country is a recommendable read. She writes of her worries, thoughts, desires...with feeling. I couldn't believe that she was eleven-she wrote as if she were thirteen or fourteen. But in those days they were very learnt, especially in languages like latin. The only negative side is that sometimes it can get a tad boring every now and then. At first you might get confused with all those Marys (five in all!) but you'll get used to it.
Anyway, I just keep coming back to this over and over! It's great, especially on a stormy day or winter's night curled up by the fire.
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Summary: Mary ,Bloody Mary
Review: Thirteen-year-old Mary has been Queen of Scotland ever since she was nine months old. She used to live in Scotland with her mother, but when King Henry II of France decides she should marry his son, Francis, Mary is sent to live in France. She joins her four sisters and one brother in the King's palace, and that's when her new life begins. In 16th century France, the royal family is very wealthy and they love to have parties and go to fancy balls all the time. Mary also attends the parties, and learns how to hunt, speak Latin and play musical instruments. But Queen Catherine, wife of King Henry, is a mean queen. She hates most people and doesn't care about their feelings. Catherine is also expecting a baby and is very jealous of the other Royal children. The story takes you through Mary's childhood and gives you a picture of the trouble that's to come for this young queen later in life. I liked this book because I like to learn about how people lived in different countries during different time periods. If I would have been Mary, I would have tried to find my mother, but stay in the same country with my family. --- (...)
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Summary: I liked this book.
Review: Thirteen-year-old Mary has been Queen of Scotland ever since she was nine months old. She used to live in Scotland with her mother, but when King Henry II of France decides she should marry his son, Francis, Mary is sent to live in France. She joins her four sisters and one brother in the King's palace, and that's when her new life begins. In 16th century France, the royal family is very wealthy and they love to have parties and go to fancy balls all the time. Mary also attends the parties, and learns how to hunt, speak Latin and play musical instruments. But Queen Catherine, wife of King Henry, is a mean queen. She hates most people and doesn't care about their feelings. Catherine is also expecting a baby and is very jealous of the other Royal children. The story takes you through Mary's childhood and gives you a picture of the trouble that's to come for this young queen later in life. I liked this book because I like to learn about how people lived in different countries during different time periods. If I would have been Mary, I would have tried to find my mother, but stay in the same country with my family. --- (...)
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Summary: A Young Queen's Dreams and Doubts..........
Review: This book was a very interesting and engaging read. Kathryn Lasky did an excellent job of portraying the young Mary Stuart's thoughts, worries, dreams, and other feelings.
The diary begins one day after Mary's eleventh birthday and covers the span of almost one year. During this time, Mary describes the challenges she faces as the Queen of Scots and future wife of the sickly French hire, Francis. Mary records her homesickness for Scotland and the loneliness caused by being away from her mother. Many interesting, real-life characters enter the scene, including the mysterious astrologer Nostradamus, the enigmatic Diane de Poitiers, and four girls each also named Mary, close friends of Mary Stuart. Throughout several months, the French court moves from chateau to chateau, living a withdrawn and lavish existence- a world within a world. Mary is forced to question her conscience, spirit, and ablility to be a good ruler in this coming of age story. As in some of the other Royal Diaries, the details presented often seem a little trivial and unimportant, but without them, I suppose this diary wouldn't be genuine or real enough. Although the diary entries provide a very good picture of what Mary's character and life were like during this stage of her childhood, I thought that some vital information was missing from the epilogue and historical note...... In general, though, this book was accurate, interesting, and very thought provoking.
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Summary: Positively Wonderful!
Review: This has got to be one of the best Royal Diary books ever written. It's smashing! It's about Mary, Queen of Scots, who is living in France with the King so she can be educated. Court life, however, is filled with mysteries and disasters. And when Mary thinks that someone is spying on her, what will she do? Read this marvelous book to find out. I loved the way Mary was strong, despite turmoil all around her. She never gave up! Now that is a real role model!
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