Finding freedom Harry and Meghan and the making of a modern royal family

Omid Scobie

eAudio - 2020

When news of the budding romance between a beloved English prince and an American actress broke, it captured the world's attention and sparked an international media frenzy. But while the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have continued to make headlines-from their engagement, wedding, and birth of their son Archie to their unprecedented decision to step back from their royal lives-few know the true story of Harry and Meghan. For the very first time, Finding Freedom goes beyond the headlines to reveal unknown details of Harry and Meghan's life together, dispelling the many rumors and misconceptions that plague the couple on both sides of the pond. As members of the select group of reporters that cover the British Royal Family and their e...ngagements, Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand have witnessed the young couple's lives as few outsiders can. With unique access and written with the participation of those closest to the couple, Finding Freedom is an honest, up-close, and disarming portrait of a confident, influential, and forward-thinking couple who are unafraid to break with tradition, determined to create a new path away from the spotlight, and dedicated to building a humanitarian legacy that will make a profound difference in the world.

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Subjects
Published
[United States] : HarperAudio 2020.
Language
English
Corporate Author
hoopla digital
Main Author
Omid Scobie (author)
Corporate Author
hoopla digital (-)
Other Authors
Carolyn Durand (author)
Edition
Unabridged
Online Access
Instantly available on hoopla.
Cover image
Physical Description
1 online resource (1 audio file (10hr., 29 min.)) : digital
Format
Mode of access: World Wide Web.
ISBN
9780063046139
Access
AVAILABLE FOR USE ONLY BY IOWA CITY AND RESIDENTS OF THE CONTRACTING GOVERNMENTS OF JOHNSON COUNTY, UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, HILLS, AND LONE TREE (IA).
Contents unavailable.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

Two members of the royal press corps give a close account of the Windsor-Markle marriage. Though royal family members cannot authorize a biography, it's hard to imagine a more supportive work than this. Scobie and Durand will convince readers that after what Harry and Meghan have been through at the hands of the press, the British people, and the rest of the royal family, they deserve a dose of compassion. Though there are no major bombshells, the authors add previously unknown nuances to what appeared to be a modern fairy tale. They offer details of Harry and Meghan's first date, many of their takeout orders, who said "I love you" first, Meghan's awkward early encounters with William and Kate, and their decision not to use a night nurse for baby Archie. Readers seeking dirt should look elsewhere. Here's what passes for a "confession": "To this day, Harry doesn't like wearing a tie. He once confessed to the authors of this book, 'We need to liven these things up, make them more fun and interesting.' " Some details are straight out of "Rumpelstiltskin": Meghan's wedding veil was a "tulle-and-silk creation so delicate and of such pure white that workers had to wash their hands every thirty minutes over the five hundred hours it took to complete." But fairy tales don't typically end with the prince and princess turning in their resignations. What went wrong? Race and class set the stage for failure as the senselessly cruel media wrestled the couple to the mat and made sure they could not get up. "My deepest fear is history repeating itself," Harry said in a statement not long after his son was born. "I've seen what happens when someone I love is commoditized to the point that they are no longer seen or treated as a real person." As the story ends with the beleaguered couple fleeing to Los Angeles ahead of the pandemic travel shutdown, one can only hope they have found the freedom suggested by the title. If you've ever thought being in the royal family sounds like a nightmare, this book leaves no doubt. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.