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liesthemoontells's review against another edition
4.0
From a purely academic perspective, this memoir is ground breaking and history making for breaking the code of silence around what really goes on behind the closed doors of the royal palaces.
From an entertainment perspective, it has everything you could hope for in a celebrity memoir: packed with scandalous anecdotes about a world the ordinary reader will never experience, which helps to humanise a figure that we rarely see other than through the telephoto lens of a tabloid, or glossy official media coverage.
Is it extremely one-sided? Yes. Are the parts about Harry's wartime experiences in Afghanistan a little bit boring and morally icky? Yes. Is his stated support of the monarchy pretty flimsy considering that the recollections he includes in this book of his King and the Heir to the throne paints them as insecure, conniving, snivelly little overgrown rich boys? Yes. Did I struggle to put it down? Yes, I was riveted.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
dmswack3's review against another edition
4.5
I highly enjoyed the narration Prince Harry gave, and the story itself was fun to listen to. His ghost writers was phenomenal in my opinion. I'm very glad I listened to it instead of reading it, however, because I think I would have found myself bored by some of the longer chapters had it not been read to me.
Something else for readers to be weary of besides long chapters and perhaps boring text, should you choose to read this rather than listen- this story bares all... Like ALL. You will hear a LOT about the Prince's... Todger, as he calls it. Like a LOT. Where it's been, who's seen it, how it's been injured so uh. Fair warning there.
Beyond the todger, this book really doesn't pull punches. I saw shocked at points, angered at others, cried at some. But I also felt myself thinking: is it all true? God I hope not. It's that bad.
Give it a listen.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Drug use, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Islamophobia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
genevieve_eggleston's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, and Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Infertility, Racial slurs, Suicide, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy
rachellynnae's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Infertility, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and War
Moderate: Bullying, Racial slurs, Racism, and Stalking
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
bootsmom3's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Moderate: Colonisation
Minor: Sexual content
mads_reads_books's review against another edition
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Antisemitism, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Car accident, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, and Classism
cheuksin's review against another edition
3.75
The tunnel is called Pont de l'Alma, I told him.
Yes, yes. He knew it.
I want to go through it.
You want to go through the tunnel?
At sixty-five miles per hour - to be precise.
Sixty-five?
Yes.
The exact speed Mummy's car had supposedly been driving
Wow. The ghostwriter really worked some magic. At some times it does feel like someone tried to stretch an sentence into and essay. Harry mentions his mother in pretty much every paragraph. Oversharing is a understatement.
Honestly, anyone who could hate Harry and Megan after reading this book is a heartless bastard. My neutral opinion of Will and Kate has also depreciated.
Graphic: Gun violence, Racism, Sexual assault, Stalking, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Xenophobia, Car accident, and Gaslighting
Minor: Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Suicide, Trafficking, and Kidnapping
caitiedundas's review against another edition
3.0
Mostly I just found it very sad. I think the book has been sensationalised by the leaked quotes and early sound bites, mostly about Harry’s penis, but the actual content is desperately sad. He comes across as a deeply traumatised, anxious man who is clearly haunted by a childhood and adolescence which sounds pretty grim despite the immense wealth and privilege. It’s very difficult not to empathise with him for his difficult experiences. I particularly enjoyed the first portion of the book, covering his childhood and early adolescence. It was interesting to get a look into this period and I felt he came across the most sincere in these parts. Not that his sincerity was something I really doubted later on in the book, but it was most pronounced early.
That being said, where I struggled to empathise was when it seemed like assertions were being made to try and ensure Harry came across as ‘a normal guy’. This is the worst in the second half of the book with passages dedicated to his supermarket routines, TK Max visits, etcetera. It seemed as though he was determined to come across as any old pleb, when it’s clear this simply isn’t the case, and this is something he does acknowledge in other areas of the book. In a passage near the end he recounts never having ordered an Amazon parcel, or held a house key, so he is clearly well aware of his unconventionally sheltered and elevated lifestyle, making the repeated attempts to situate himself as an ‘ordinary’ person all the more puzzling. Add to that the copious mentions of exclusive members club Soho House, plenty of occasions of friends with spare mansions, lots of monetary talk. The guy is clearly wealthy and privileged, and the book would be better for it if his honesty there was more consistent.
The writing was decent. Nothing I felt particularly blown away by but it was an enjoyable, fast paced read. The atmospheric descriptions, in particular, I thought were strong, and the themes which strung throughout the memoir and motifs which popped up repeatedly were used effectively (the flag, the biro, etc).
Not really a critique of the book as it is indeed reality but it was sad that the book ended on a rather negative note, with evidently little contact between Harry and his Royal family. It feels like quite an open ending, something I suspect is purposeful for another book.
Overall - a decent read! Despite being long it remained pretty fast paced and only took me a few days to read, with a fairly moderate amount of time dedicated to reading each day. Wouldn’t have spent the full price or indeed the current standard half price on it, but the nice it ends up in the charity shops it is absolutely worth a wee read!
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Antisemitism, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Bullying, Drug use, Infertility, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual content, and Medical content
maggieparedesauthor's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Infertility, Alcohol, and War