Books/TV/Films about the Stuarts

[Penny_Wilson]

Some photos of ScarJo and Natalie Portman on this set in partial costume.  It doesn't look like dye plays much of a part in Scarlet's plan -- she does look slightly darker, though.

http://www.egotastic.com/entertainment/celebrities/natalie-portman/natalie-portman-and-scarlett-johansson-together-at-last-at-last-001710

Courtesy of www.dlisted.com

~Penny

[Kimberly]

I have discovered that laydees (and gents) of a...ahem certain age can get cheap tickets at the local cinema, I don't quite qualify for that just yet but I might pop down and catch a matinee showing of this movie. Somebody remind me, who is playing the part of Henry?

[jehan]

i see her more as mary boleyn (who was more of the easy kind of person) then as mary queen of scots (who was actually intelligent)...

Scarlet may be a little smarter than you give her credit for.  After all she turned down Tom Cruise, before he hooked up with Katie. 

[nerdycool]

Somebody remind me, who is playing the part of Henry?

Eric Bana

[Romanov_fan]

I like Scarlet's movies, but I am not sure she would make a good Queen of Scots.I think she is a bit more intelligent than your average Hollywood actress. I have read her interviews and one in Elle from either late last year or early this year confirms what I say about her intelligence.I can't see her playing Mary Stuart though, she looks too modern, or retro Hollywood. She just isn't her...

[helenazar]

I came upon a book called 'Immortal Queen' by Elizabeth Byrd at a library completely by accident. It is a historical novel about Mary Stuart, starting from her arrival in France as a child and ending with her execution. It is extremely well written and accurate, as far as I can tell. It reads like a very good novel and draws you in to a point where you don't want to put it down - even though you know what's going to happen. It gives great insights into Mary's life and personality. It actually made me feel somewhat sympathetic towards Mary (which I didn't prior to reading this book) - at least it made me sort of understand where she was coming from and why she did the things she did. IMO, although it was written 50+ years ago, this is one of the best books, fiction or non-fiction, I ever read about Mary Queen of Scots! Definitely two thumbs up     

[Kimberly]

OMG Helen I love Elizabeth Byrd. Can I also recommend "Flowers of the Forest". It paints a wonderful portrait of Edinburgh in the 16th century with a unputdownable tale as well. (set in the time of James IV)

[helenazar]

Are all her books about Scotland or some are about Britain? She is a wonderful writer!

[Kimberly]

I have only ever read Immortal Queen and Flowers of the Forest and that was many years ago. I am about to order them from Amazon. I'd forgotten about her and now I cannot wait to re-read them. I'm sure she has written more. I'm sure we can think of another authoress who could take a few leaves out of Ms. Byrd's books.

[helenazar]

I'm sure we can think of another authoress who could take a few leaves out of Ms. Byrd's books.

Yeah, I wonder who  .


I just checked on Amazon, and here are other books by Byrd - there are quite a few!

Maid of Honour: A Novel Set in the Court of Mary Queen of Scots. Customer review: This novel is an odd companion piece to "Immortal Queen," Byrd's brilliant 1956 novel about Mary Queen of Scots. I say "odd" because it is a virtual retelling of "Queen," except while the earlier novel was told from Mary's viewpoint, "Maid" is "told" by Mary Seton, one of the Queen's maids-of honor.There are obvious disadvantages to this method of telling Mary's story, namely, that everything of interest in the novel is related to the reader by second-hand. We are "shown" only a surface glimpse of Mary's life, and to try and compensate, Byrd throws in a throughly pointless subplot concerning Seton's (completely fictitious) love for a priest. If Byrd found it so impossible to leave the subject of Mary alone, she would have been better advised to have used a more satisfying method of retelling the story. That said, however, while this is no "Immortal Queen," "Maid of Honour" is still far superior to the usual examples of Marian fiction, which, (with a few exceptions) tend to range from mediocre to godawful.

Long Enchantment.  No reviews available.

 Ghosts in My Life.  No reviews available.

Rest without peace. No reviews available.

It Had to Be You: A Novel.    No reviews available.

I'll Get By.  Editorial review: A 15-year-old girl goes to private school in Manhattan in 1928 and wishes her traveling father spent more time at home.

Lady of Monkton.  No reviews available.

The diamond. No reviews available.

A strange and seeing time. No reviews available.

The Search for Maggie Hare. No reviews available.

The famished land: A novel of the Irish potato famine. No reviews available.

[Kimberly]

Good lord talk about "flashback". Maid of Honor is superb...and really tragic. Her description of the death of Rizzio is heart rending, and the bit where one of the Maries (Seton, I think,) trips over the grave of her erstwhile priest lover..... you need chocs, wine and a hankie. Even though these stories are romanticised, they are beautifully written.

[Prince_Lieven]

I'll take the chocs and the hankey, you can keep the wine. 

Thanks for the recommendations. The one about the potato famine could be interesting. 

[Kimberly]

Chocs, hanky and poteen then  (Irish joke)

[helenazar]

Unfortunately my library only has The Immortal Queen and The Famished Land . I may have to bite the bullet and purchase some of the others from Amazon! 

[Kimberly]

Heh, I just bought Flowers of the Forest for 1penny (and ImmortalQueen for a fiver)