The Other Boleyn Girl

I liked this book, I found the historical part of it interesting although much of it was fictional in order to fill in the "holes" of the life of the Boleyn girls. It was well written and worth reading!

I enjoyed this book so much, I read it twice. Rarely do I do that. I was disappointed in the watered-down film version, however. This is my first Philippa Gregory book, but certainly not my last.

I simply couldn't put this book down! Just read one bit at the bookstore and I promise you won't be disappointed!
It is well written, creative, and NEVER a dull moment in the life of the court! I loved how the author revived the Boleyn family and created such wonderful characters that you want to see succeed in life! You want to meet them, spend the day with them, and help them! It was just a lovely book and I can't wait to read more of her novels!!!

I loved this book, I thought that it was very well written. Phillipa Gregory makes it feel like you are there watching all of the stuff as its happening. It is so hard to believe that these were real people, who had to live like that. She makes history fun to read about. It is such a great book. I recommend it to all my friends and family that enjoy reading. I will defiantly read this one again!!!!

Historical fiction is a favourite guilty pleasure of mine, and I came to this book with no pre-conceptions; in fact, I actually expected to like it. Unfortunately, and many reviewers have said it more eloquently than I, TOBG is poorly-written, vulgar and offensive on a number of levels. It is reminiscent of self-indulgent internet fanfic, where the only constructive criticism received must have been along the lines of "Soooo need more!!1!!!" I am still mystified as to how it even got published in its current form.

I get that this is historical _fiction_, and that that means an author is free to make up details as he or she sees fit. Of course, one can never expect complete accuracy; I am pretty tolerant of historical errors and literary licence, provided that these are acknowledged and disclosed to the reader. I've enjoyed numerous historical novels, most of which could never be regarded as classic literature or accurate, but which bring to life the era and the personalities vividly. I did not expect the definitive biography of Anne and Mary Boleyn by any stretch of the imagination. What I did expect though was at least an attempt at treating the characters with a modicum of respect and remaining true as far as possible to what we know about them, as well as a gripping and enjoyable story. TOBG provided neither.

This author claims to be a "feminist historian." However there is nothing "feminist" about the portrayal of the women here, in fact like a previous reviewer, I think it's bordering on misogynist: Mary and Anne are reduced to one-dimensional representatives of the "Madonna/whore" stereotype, with Mary being the ultimate Mary Sue, embodiment of all that is pure and virtuous (complete with some 21st century attitudes about marrying for love), and Anne a vicious, megalomaniacal, amoral troll with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Mary's reputation - which comes to us from contemporary accounts - as a good-time girl of the French court is completely whitewashed over; in this universe, she is a sweet, innocent teenager when she becomes Henry VIII's mistress. There's no sign of Anne Boleyn, the cultured, very well-educated, multilingual Renaissance lady and Queen, who produced the great Elizabeth I and during her lifetime, patronised the arts, generously dispensed charity and was deeply interested in religious reform, to name just a few things.

This novel does both of these women, as well as the other characters, a disservice with this flat, caricatured portrayal. There is no light and shade, no complexity; in fact, some of the characterisations are completely implausible. The dialogue is frequently anachronistic, the prose is often turgid and heavy-handed - Gregory tells, rather than shows - and I found myself skim-reading a lot of it just to finish it. The language evokes little sense of the period, with characters being attributed with modern attitudes and opinions. It takes some doing, but TOBG manages to turn interesting, dramatic and complex events into a dreary, tedious family soap opera.

Fiction dealing with people who really existed is tough to write, as I believe there is a responsibility to remain as close to the facts as we know them as possible; one must have very good reason to diverge from the accepted historical record. This means researching the era and the personalities almost as thoroughly as one would a biography. As other reviewers have pointed out, Gregory's research - if the listed bibliography is all that was consulted - appears shoddy at best: she ignores the definitive biography of Anne Boleyn by Eric Ives, for example. Some of the plot elements are so removed from the historical record that it is hard to take the novel seriously. Anne marrying Henry Percy? Being sent to France as "punishment"? Henry VIII fathering both of Mary Boleyn's children? The Boleyn parents effectively being pimps for their daughters? Anne seducing Henry away from her sister? "Stealing" or "abducting" Mary's son to establish him as a "potential Tudor-Boleyn heir"? George Boleyn sleeping with Francis Weston (this element did nothing to advance the story whatsoever, and seemed to be included for the sake of it) but also happens to be sexually attracted to his sister ... and acts on it? Mark Smeaton being _ Weston_'s musician? Deformed incest babies? The list goes on. Sorry, just no.

Again, an author is entitled to take liberties and deviate from the historical record for dramatic purposes, but here, there is no disclosure that this has occurred; in fact, there has been repeated insistence to the contrary. Further, it is difficult to see how the plot and the central themes of the novel would have suffered had some of the above elements been accurate.

This would have been a far better novel had it focused on purely imaginary characters, set in Tudor times. The same themes could have been explored just as effectively had the protagonists been say, two fictional noblewomen vying for the attention of the Duke of Whatever, and there is no restriction on how the personalities are portrayed or the course of events.

I respect the fact that many readers have enjoyed this novel for what it is, but I sincerely hope those whose interest in the period has been sparked by TOBG will go beyond this frankly bizarre alternate universe and sketchy bibliography, and discover the fascinating story of the _real_ Anne Boleyn. Excellent non-fiction sources include Ives' "The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn"; and Antonia Fraser and David Starkey's works on the six wives. As for novels about Anne Boleyn - although dated, the best I've found are probably those by Margaret Campbell Barnes ("Brief Gaudy Hour") and Jean Plaidy ("Murder Most Royal").