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 : The Uncommon Reader: A Novella

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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN: 9780374280963
Edition: 1st
ISBN: 0374280967
Label: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 128
Publication Date: September 18, 2007
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Release Date: September 18, 2007
Studio: Farrar, Straus and Giroux




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Editorial Review:

Product Description:
From the author of The History Boys and The Clothes They Stood Up In

A deliciously funny novella that celebrates the pleasure of reading. When the Queen in pursuit of her wandering corgis stumbles upon a mobile library she feels duty bound to borrow a book. Aided by Norman, a young man from the palace kitchen who frequents the library, Bennett describes the Queen’s transformation as she discovers the liberating pleasures of the written word. With the poignant and mischievous wit of The History Boys, England’s best loved author revels in the power of literature to change even the most uncommon reader’s life.




Customer Reviews
Average Rating:  out of 5 stars

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars - It's an interesting fantasy but I had problems with it.
This one had been lurking for a while on my Mt. To-Be-Read, and last night I was looking for something to lightly amuse me on a very cold night. Being the inveterate Royal-watcher that I am, I knew that this was one novella that I needed to read, so I settled in with a good, stiff cup of tea and started to read.

Alan Bennett, a very successful author, takes on England's monarchy in this cheerful little tale of subversion and literary adventures. With spare prose, he poses the question ... Read More



Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Go ahead...read this book!
Go ahead...read this book. It will only take an evening or two, and, even though it's about Queen Elizabeth II, it's just plain fun. And I laughed out loud when I bumped into the last page. Fantastic (but don't dare peek or the rest will be ruined).

This is a not-so-serious book about falling in love with reading, learning what you can from it, and then getting on with what's next. If you are a reader, you'll recognize yourself somewhere in this story. If not, you just might be tempted ... Read More



Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - The Uncommon Reader
Eminently readable highly original and mildly sarcastic spoof centering on the Queen of England and her entourage. Very funny.



Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - One should read this novella.
The Uncommon Reader is a lighthearted and winsome little novella, a pleasant break from the heavier tomes of capital 'L' Literature, but no less smart for it. In his fictional scenario, Alan Bennett follows what might happen if Queen Elizabeth II went to fetch her corgis out of a traveling library and, to be polite, checked out a book. And then found that she actually quite enjoyed reading. And then began to take less pleasure in her queenly duties because of this newfound hobby. The novella shows an internal ... Read More



Rating: 2 out of 5 stars - Dissappointed
After the initial cleverness of this book, which I did laugh out loud at a couple times thinking of the queen getting hooked on reading, it deflated for me. I think because the longer it went, the plausibility factor greatly diminished. I did pass along the book to a friend though, for grins.







 






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