| Created 2007..09.03; Updated 2007.09.12 |
This article originally appeared in the British Weekly. Image copyright Pocket Star.
by Gabrielle Pantera [More
articles ]
2007.9.1
Rating: 4 stars ****
Philippa Gregory’s novel evokes the splendor and turbulence of Henry the VIII's court.
Mary Boleyn is The Other Boleyn Girl. Mary was mostly forgotten in the shadow of her more famous sister Anne. Mary enjoyed the simple pleasure of court and is faithful to her husband until the roving eye of King Henry the VIII falls on her. Mary’s uncle, the Duke of Norfolk, her ambitious brother George, and her parents push Mary toward the great wealth and titles achievable from an affair between Mary and the king.
Mary becomes pregnant with the first of the king’s two children that she bears. Her family and husband gain wealth and titles, but Mary doesn’t ask for anything except to be able to see her children and to name them. During Mary’s second pregnancy, her uncle has Anne captivate the king to keep him from straying to a girl in another ambitious family. Mary is cast aside for her sister Anne.
Mary’s the only Boleyn sibling to survive Henry the VIII’s reign. Her sister Anne, whose marriage to Henry the VIII shifted England from Catholic to Protestant, was beheaded for witchcraft. Her homosexual brother George was executed on the charge of being Anne’s lover. In the end, Mary – who showed no ambition – and her children inherit the Boleyn land and titles. Maybe Mary was the shrewd one after all?
Philippa Gregory is the author of the best-selling Wideacre trilogy and the historical novel The Queen's Fool. She holds a B.A. in history from Sussex and a Ph.D. in 18th-century literature. Her graduate research in Edinburgh became both her thesis and her first novel, Wideacre. Philippa Gregory creates a believable work of fiction with strong character development.
In February 2008, Columbia Pictures will release the movie The Other Boleyn Girl starring Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman. Now’s a good time to read the book before the movie comes out.