Christopher Hibbert has written many well-received biographies, including, most recently, Queen Victoria. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and an honourary Doctor of Letters of Leicester University.
Hibbert, a well-respected independent scholar and biographer (Wellington, George III ), has tapped most of the extant sources on Victoria's long life and reign. Using private correspondence, diaries, and official papers, he reveals a much more complex Queen Victoria than many readers have imagined. Indeed, one of the book's main strengths is the author's ability to present the paradoxical nature of Victoria's worldview. Although the queen had a seemingly advanced detestation of racism, she was reactionary enough to abhor modern education and the suffragette movement. Hibbert usually manages to balance detail and brevity, though some of the chapters, such as the one on the death of Prince Albert, bog down in minutiae. In addition, he does not give much information on the evolution of constitutional government, though scholars will learn a great deal about Victoria's opinion on major events and issues. These are, however, minor criticisms of a book that will likely become the standard. Recommended for all libraries.DFrederic Krome, Jacob Rader Marcus Ctr. of the American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.
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