Books To Read for 2004

Tudor-Stuart Family Feud

Note: This commentary appeared in the December 29, 2004 issue of The Daily Yomiuri, Japan's largest English-language daily. It was written by Christine Miki, author of Tokyo Stories, a humorous novel on expatriate life in Japan.

Because I write fiction, I enjoy biographies. These are great studies in human nature and in the common emotions that transcend time and place. For example, it's uncanny how the insecurities of a 16th-century European queen are so similar to those of a senior executive in present-day Tokyo. Human nature is both timeless and borderless. This year my favorite biography has been Elizabeth & Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens (by Jane Dunn/ Harper Perennial in 2004), a comparison of Elizabeth I of England and of Mary Queen of Scots, two fascinating women who were bound by blood and rivalry. I bought this in a London bookshop after it appeared in The Sunday Times bestseller list and was happily rewarded with good writing, meticulous research, and interesting details. However, to enjoy this book fully, I recommend reading beforehand the excellent biographies of Elizabeth I (by Alison Weir/ Ballantine Books) and Mary Queen of Scots (by Antonia Fraser/ Delta Trade Paperbacks). Now, you may ask, why spend so much time on these women? First, if you love a good story of love and tragedy, none of these will disappoint. Second, their lives made a significant impact on Western history. The Elizabethan Age is widely acknowledged as England's Golden Era and this is due largely to the wisdom of the complex Elizabeth I. Meanwhile, Mary was a Catholic queen of a largely Protestant Scotland. If she had actually lived to rule her country, perhaps Scotland would have reverted to Catholicism, or maybe it would be more Spanish or French than English even today. These books and such musings kept me engrossed in 2004.

Elizabeth & Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens
by Jane Dunn
Published by Harper Perennial (Harper Collins)
Latest edition published
by Harper Perennial in 2004

Back to the Tokyo Stories homepage.