Book of the week: The Lyrics by Paul McCartney
McCartney’s charming delve into his back catalogue is the ‘closest to an autobiography we’ll get’
![George Harrison and Paul McCartney on stage](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/g4SKiRdMm52PSrbxDqgjhi-415-80.jpg)
Few monarchs have been as “discreet and inscrutable as George V”, said Ysenda Maxtone Graham in The Times. Britain’s king from 1910 to 1936 was a man who hid behind “many layers”: not only his nicotine-stained beard and thick Victorian frock coat, but also his “all-consuming, conversation-avoiding addiction to shooting and stamp collecting”.
His diaries, written up every night, chronicle the minutiae of his days – right down to the time he had breakfast – but give “no evidence of an inner life”. One characteristic entry reads: “I have got to go to London I regret today, on account of the political crisis & shall lose my day’s shooting at Six Mile Bottom”. You’d think such a man would make a hopeless subject – and yet against the odds, Jane Ridley’s biography succeeds in being “superbly un-dull”.
It achieves this by not concentrating excessively on its central subject, said Max Hastings in The Sunday Times. As monarch, George was witness to a “procession of extraordinary events”, from the assassination of Franz Ferdinand in 1914 – which obliged him to “miss a planned pheasant-shooting date with the archduke” – to his “eldest son’s manic affair with Wallis Simpson”, which after his death led to the abdication crisis.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Ridley devotes a sizeable portion of her book to such events, and also to George’s charismatic wife, Queen Mary, whose fondness for shopping led to her becoming known as the “kleptomaniac Queen”.
Ridley contends that George himself was not so much dull as ordinary, said A.N. Wilson in the TLS. And this proves to be a “revelatory distinction”. For it transforms what might have been the biography of a dullard into one “about innate, quiet decency surviving in an indecent, rowdy world”. The result is a “wonderful” book – the best royal biography I’ve read in decades.
Chatto & Windus 576pp £30; The Week Bookshop £23.99 (incl. p&p)
The Week Bookshop
To order this title or any other book in print, visit theweekbookshop.co.uk, or speak to a bookseller on 020-3176 3835. Opening times: Monday to Saturday 9am-5.30pm and Sunday 10am-4pm.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Leonora Carrington: Rebel Visionary – an exhibition of 'unearthly delights'
The 'captivating' show features over 70 pieces spanning everything from paintings to tapestries
By The Week UK Published
-
Patrick Bishop picks his five favourite books
The acclaimed historian chooses works by Ernest Hemingway, Richard Cobb and more
By The Week UK Published
-
Lady in the Lake: 'brooding' murder-mystery casts 'a potent spell'
Natalie Portman gives a 'scene-stealing' show in period thriller
By The Week UK Published
-
Leonora Carrington: Rebel Visionary – an exhibition of 'unearthly delights'
The 'captivating' show features over 70 pieces spanning everything from paintings to tapestries
By The Week UK Published
-
Patrick Bishop picks his five favourite books
The acclaimed historian chooses works by Ernest Hemingway, Richard Cobb and more
By The Week UK Published
-
Lady in the Lake: 'brooding' murder-mystery casts 'a potent spell'
Natalie Portman gives a 'scene-stealing' show in period thriller
By The Week UK Published
-
Twisters review: 'warm-blooded' film explores dangerous weather
The Week Recommends The film, focusing on 'tornado wranglers', stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell
By The Week UK Published
-
6 coastal homes in Cape Cod
Feature Featuring a wall of glass in Mashpee and an undulating roofline in Wellfleet
By The Week Staff Published
-
Peng Shepherd's 6 favorite works with themes of magical realism
Feature The author recommends works by Susanna Clarke, George Saunders, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Francis Alÿs: Ricochets – a 'heart-stopping' exhibition at London's Barbican
The Week Recommends 'Mesmerising' films of children at play around the world from Kharkiv to Mosul
By The Week UK Published
-
Mishal Husain: BBC journalist shares her six favourite books
The Week Recommends Newsreader and Radio 4 presenter picks works by Louisa May Alcott, Jamil Ahmad and more
By The Week UK Published