Also out just before Christmas was this year’s final issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly (no 4 – 2011), which includes my biographical article on the humanitarian and activist Elsa Cedergren (1893-1996), the youngest daughter of Prince Oscar Bernadotte and sister of the famous Folke Bernadotte. It seems Elsa Cedergren is now primarily remembered for having been the (so far) only Bernadotte to reach the age of 100, but there were certainly much else of interest about her.
To the same magazine I have also contributed reviews of Philip Eade’s excellent Young Prince Philip: His Turbulent Early Life and Ilana D. Miller’s The Four Graces: Queen Victoria’s Hessian Granddaughters. (Concerning the latter title the editor has, curiously, chosen to add a second “review” by Charlotte Zeepvat, who appears to be a friend of the author and is thanked profusely in the book’s preface for her help and support.)
The Society for Court Studies has also brought out this year’s second issue of their journal The Court Historian (Volume 16, 2), which contains several very interesting articles and to which I have been happy to contribute a review article about the exhibition “Härskarkonst – Napoleon, Karl Johan, Alexander” (“Staging Power – Napoleon, Charles John, Alexander”), which was held at the National Museum in Stockholm from September 2010 to January 2011.
These bring the total number of my published works this year up to nineteen, consisting of seven topical or biographical articles, four op-eds, six reviews, one obituary and one letter to the editor.
Just to be clear, Trond: I was asked to review 'The Four Graces' for RDQ when the book first came out. Your review was the later addition. And far from being dishonest, as you suggest, I shared some of your criticisms of the book but also saw positive value in it where you did not. I've answered questions for a number of authors down the years but was not especially involved in this book and did not feel bound to praise it in any way. Our assessments of the book are different - is that any reason for you to suggest that mine was dishonest?
ReplyDeleteCharlotte Zeepvat
I have not in any way suggested that you review was dishonest, but when one reviews a book written by someone one is apparently on friendly terms with and to which one has contributed, the readers of the review should be made aware of those facts. There is no accusation of dishonesty in that.
ReplyDeleteI notice that you say that you were not involved with this book. If so, the author must be wrong when she thanks you in the acknowledgements for your help. Anyway it is is a golden rule never to review a book in which one is mentioned in the acknowledgements, a rule you might as well take notice of for the future.
It is incorrect that I did not see positive values in it. The book has strong aspects and weak aspects and as any reviewer ought to do I have evalutated the book solely based on that.
Your account of the chronology does not correspond with the account I have been given by the editor. I made a deal with him to review the book when it was first published, while your review only appeared at a later stage, is what I have been told by the editor.
Congratulations on those published works, can I suggest a book on Desiree Clary Bernadotte,
ReplyDeleteI just love reading your blog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Naomi
Thank you. There are several books on Queen Desideria, but the only one which is a proper, reliable biography is "Désirée Clary: D'après sa correspondance inédite avec Bonaparte, Bernadotte et sa famille" (1959) by Gabriel Girod de l'Ain (a great-great-grandson of one of her sisters). It has also been published in Swedish ("Désirée Bernadotte") and in German ("Désirée Clary - Ein Lebensbild nach ihrem unveröffentlichten Briefwechsel mit Bonaparte, Bernadotte und ihrer Familie").
ReplyDeleteThank you for this blogpost, via bokbörsen.se the book "Désirée Bernadotte", the book arrived today. My French is not good, but my Swedish is much better. Thanks again.
DeleteAnitaK
I recently looked through the thesis of Per Sandin on (some aspects of) the early Bernadotte dynasty. Now I understand why you have not commented upon that work on your blog!! I was actually expecting to see some comments. Now I understand this is not done.
ReplyDeleteMartin Rahm
Per Sandin's dissertation is very interesting and I was glad I could be of help to him in various ways. However, it is a basic rule that one never reviews works by friends or works to which one has oneself contributed. This is such a basic and well-known rule that one would assume it was known to all reviewers. And reviews written by friends and helpers are of course not really of interest to anyone. Would we not all take a review with several grains of salt if we knew that the reviewer was a friend of the author and/or had been involved in the work?
DeleteOf course you are right. I am not not from the scientific world and instead so used to- from let us call it the "cultural" world- that reviews are written by friends and admirers. Sad in small countries like Sweden and Norway.
ReplyDeleteMartin Rahm
I think that when that happens one ought at least to be open about one's involvement or relationship to the author.
Delete