I received The King’s Curse by Philippa Gregory from Simon
and Schuster Canada through a Giveaway on Goodreads.
The King’s Curse is an exceptionally well-writing and in
some places brilliant historical novel which tells the story of Margaret Pole,
the Countess of Salisbury. Actually it tells more than Margaret’s story, it
tells the story of King Henry VIII and five of his wives as well as the story
of Margaret’s close and extended family and freinds. The book left me wanting to know more and I
often did extra research on the lives of the people mentioned in this book.
My major complaint with the story was that I felt that
Philippa Gregory was not always faithful to history in an attempt to create Margaret
as a character that modern day readers would have sympathy for. For example there is the story of how her son
Reginald was left at the monastery because Margaret had no other choice. We are
told that she did not have enough money to feed all her children. While some of
this might be true, what little I know of the times suggests that second or
third sons were often expected to serve the church. There was little question
as to whether they were suitable or not. The second place where I felt that
Philippa Gregory was not faithful to history was where the widow of one of her
sons demands to go into a nunnery after her husband dies. It is much more
likely that Margaret Pole and her surviving sons forced this daughter-in-law
into the nunnery against her will so that they could keep control of her
fortune. This said, I think that
Philippa Gregory understands modern day readers enough to know that most readers
want to have a sympathetic character more than one that is historically accurate.
In spite of my questions as to the book’s historical
accuracy it was an engaging read that brought this time in British history to
life. I certainly gained a new perspective as to how unbalanced and ruthless King
Henry VIII was. This story made me think
of the words of Martin Niemöller: First they came for the Socialists, and I did
not speak out because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists,
and I did not speak out because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for
the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for
me and there was no one left to speak for me. The message that comes to me from
reading The King’s Curse is the importance of standing against injustice when
it touches others if we do not want to be its next victim.
