The Uncommon Reader

I just finished this novella, which Wikipedia tells us is longer than a novelette and shorter than a novel, about a certain queen who becomes obsessed with reading in her later years. It is actually sympathetic with the queen's job, while making fun of those that surround her.

It is a nicely done little story, really a kind of parable, by Alan Bennett, one of England's leading dramatists—Beyond The Fringe, The Madness of King George III, The History Boys—in a different genre, I would guess, from what he has done most of his life, in which he gets to give many of those who have surrounded him all his life either a gentle tap on the head, indicating "well done, even if nobody was paying attention" or sometimes the same tap but now meaning "you silly bugger, you thought we weren't paying attention."

It's quick and fun to read, especially the short sentences, which have the same attention-getting effect on the reader as they do on the stage. And it does have a few serious points to make about reading and royalty. And this edition has those sturdy paper foldovers so that you can easily mark your place, even if they were not necessary in this particular little book.