The Uncommon Reader

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
Fiction, 2007, 120 pages
Rating: 4 (Amazon 4.5)
Recommended by: Dr. Elaine Newton (Phil's Critics Choice leader)
Recommendation: An interesting book, quick read, with insight into the power of literature.
Summary:
From Publishers Weekly: Briskly original and subversively funny, this novella from popular British writer Bennett (Untold Stories; Tony-winning play The History Boys) sends Queen Elizabeth II into a mobile library van in pursuit of her runaway corgis and into the reflective, observant life of an avid reader. Guided by Norman, a former kitchen boy and enthusiast of gay authors, the queen gradually loses interest in her endless succession of official duties and learns the pleasure of such a common activity. With the dawn of her sensibility... mistaken for the onset of senility, plots are hatched by the prime minister and the queen's staff to dispatch Norman and discourage the queen's preoccupation with books. Ultimately, it is her own growing self-awareness that leads her away from reading and toward writing, with astonishing results. Bennett has fun with the proper behavior and protocol at the palace, and the few instances of mild coarseness seem almost scandalous. There are lessons packed in here, but Bennett doesn't wallop readers with them. It's a fun little book.
From Bookmarks Magazine: .....A political and literary satire, it pokes fun at the British monarchy while revealing the lasting power of literature. Reviews suggest that "The Uncommon Reader" should be enjoyed like the sort of reading it espouses: casually, but with a sensitivity to serious things as well.
Favorite Passages:
pg 29:....'I can understand,' he said. 'Your Majesty's need to pass the time.'
'Pass the time?' said the Queen. 'Books are not about passing the time. They're about other lives. Other worlds. Far from wanting time to pass, Sir Kevin, one just wishes one had more of it......'