With the clarity of expertise, Owens sets out an agenda to give the Crown an energetic role in the 21st century.
Why a new king represents a window of opportunity for the reinvigoration of the British monarchy.
The monarchy is a bundle of paradoxes: reigning but not ruling, a hereditary role in a modern democracy, a representative of the people while living in castles and enjoying huge wealth. Elizabeth II was widely admired at home and abroad; her son and successor, Charles III, is still finding his footing, but seems to be open to new thinking. Owens, a historian and royal commentator who describes himself as a “critical friend” of the monarchy, hopes so. Elizabeth emphasized stability, but that meant ignorance of many emerging problems. Many young people see the monarchy as an outdated institution, and while it’s currently a minority sentiment, it will grow if meaningful reforms are not undertaken. Elizabeth defined her role as one of self-sacrifice and duty, but scandals and family quarrels have undermined the royal image. With Britain enduring political polarization, increasing inequality, and ineffective governments, the monarch could, Owens suggests, do much to bind the country’s wounds. A crucial step would be to define the vague powers of the monarch with legislation that would also implement needed governance reforms. Slimming the extended family of royals to the core figures would also allow for a focus on nonpartisan issues such as environmental protection and climate change, matters where Charles already has indicated a strong interest. There are some useful models of reformist royals, such as in Denmark. Owens’ ideas are good food for thought, but they will be difficult to implement. Still, one might hope that Charles proves to be willing and able to start down a modernizing path. “Radical renewal,” writes the author, would create “a monarchy fit for the twenty-first century, one that plays a genuinely useful role in national life.”
With the clarity of expertise, Owens sets out an agenda to give the Crown an energetic role in the 21st century.Pub Date: Nov. 14, 2023
ISBN: 9781399406529
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Bloomsbury Continuum
Review Posted Online: Aug. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.
Greed, depravity, and serial murder in 1920s Oklahoma.
During that time, enrolled members of the Osage Indian nation were among the wealthiest people per capita in the world. The rich oil fields beneath their reservation brought millions of dollars into the tribe annually, distributed to tribal members holding "headrights" that could not be bought or sold but only inherited. This vast wealth attracted the attention of unscrupulous whites who found ways to divert it to themselves by marrying Osage women or by having Osage declared legally incompetent so the whites could fleece them through the administration of their estates. For some, however, these deceptive tactics were not enough, and a plague of violent death—by shooting, poison, orchestrated automobile accident, and bombing—began to decimate the Osage in what they came to call the "Reign of Terror." Corrupt and incompetent law enforcement and judicial systems ensured that the perpetrators were never found or punished until the young J. Edgar Hoover saw cracking these cases as a means of burnishing the reputation of the newly professionalized FBI. Bestselling New Yorkerstaff writer Grann (The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession, 2010, etc.) follows Special Agent Tom White and his assistants as they track the killers of one extended Osage family through a closed local culture of greed, bigotry, and lies in pursuit of protection for the survivors and justice for the dead. But he doesn't stop there; relying almost entirely on primary and unpublished sources, the author goes on to expose a web of conspiracy and corruption that extended far wider than even the FBI ever suspected. This page-turner surges forward with the pacing of a true-crime thriller, elevated by Grann's crisp and evocative prose and enhanced by dozens of period photographs.
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.Pub Date: April 18, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-385-53424-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
A determined if self-regarding portrait of a candidate striving to define herself and her campaign on her own terms.
An insider’s chronicle of a pivotal presidential campaign.
Several months into the mounting political upheaval of Donald Trump’s second term and following a wave of bestselling political exposés, most notably Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s Original Sin on Joe Biden’s health and late decision to step down, former Vice President Harris offers her own account of the consequential months surrounding Biden’s withdrawal and her swift campaign for the presidency. Structured as brief chapters with countdown headers from 107 days to Election Day, the book recounts the campaign’s daily rigors: vetting a running mate, navigating back-to-back rallies, preparing for the convention and the debate with Trump, and deflecting obstacles in the form of both Trump’s camp and Biden’s faltering team. Harris aims to set the record straight on issues that have remained hotly debated. While acknowledging Biden’s advancing decline, she also highlights his foreign-policy steadiness: “His years of experience in foreign policy clearly showed….He was always focused, always commander in chief in that room.” More blame is placed on his inner circle, especially Jill Biden, whom Harris faults for pushing him beyond his limits—“the people who knew him best, should have realized that any campaign was a bridge too far.” Throughout, she highlights her own qualifications and dismisses suggestions that an open contest might have better served the party: “If they thought I was down with a mini primary or some other half-baked procedure, I was quick to disabuse them.” Facing Trump’s increasingly unhinged behavior, Harris never openly doubts her ability to confront him. Yet she doesn’t fully persuade the reader that she had the capacity to counter his dominance, suggesting instead that her defeat stemmed from a lack of time—a theme underscored by the urgency of the book’s title. If not entirely sanguine about the future, she maintains a clear-eyed view of the damage already done: “Perhaps so much damage that we will have to re-create our government…something leaner, swifter, and much more efficient.”
A determined if self-regarding portrait of a candidate striving to define herself and her campaign on her own terms.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9781668211656
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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