Life of Elizabeth I

The long life and powerful personality of England's beloved Virgin Queen
have eternal appeal, and popular historian Alison Weir depicts both
with panache. She's especially good at evoking the physical texture of
Tudor England: the elaborate royal gowns (actually an intricate assembly
of separate fabric panels buttoned together over linen shifts), the
luxurious but unhygienic palaces (Elizabeth got the only "close stool";
most members of her retinue relieved themselves in the courtyards), the
huge meals heavily seasoned to disguise the taste of spoiled meat.
Against this earthy backdrop, Elizabeth's intelligence and formidable
political skills stand in vivid relief. She may have been autocratic,
devious, even deceptive, but these traits were required to perform a
45-year tightrope walk between the two great powers of Europe, France
and Spain. Both countries were eager to bring small, weak England under
their sway and to safely marry off its inconveniently independent queen.
Weir emphasizes Elizabeth's precarious position as a ruling woman in a
man's world, suggesting plausibly that the single life was personally
appealing as well as politically expedient for someone who had seen many
ambitious ladies--including her own mother--ruined and even executed
for just the appearance of sexual indiscretions. The author's
evaluations of such key figures in Elizabeth's reign as the Earl of
Leicester (arguably the only man she ever loved) and William Cecil (her
most trusted adviser) are equally cogent and respectful of psychological
complexity. Weir does a fine job of retelling this always-popular story
for a new generation.