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My reading game has been off for a while, so I’m excited to report that I’m BACK with a good book review for you all!
About two weeks ago, I started working on a diamond painting to help ease my anxiety. While I worked on it, I listened to podcasts and audiobooks.
I dug through the Libby app and came across “Spare” by Prince Harry. It was available immediately — I love sorting the books on Libby by availability — so I quickly decided to borrow it.
When I heard Prince Harry was coming out with a book, I had no interest in reading it. Honestly, I’ve found the discourse in the press about him and Meghan to be a little obnoxious.
But, why not hear (literally) what he has to say? If it’s terrible, I could always quit listening to it, I thought.
So, I borrowed it and started listening (and placing diamonds).
There are three parts to the book. The book opens with Princess Diana’s death, and part one is about her funeral and how Prince Harry dealt with his loss.
I found this entire part of the book fascinating — sad, of course — but this is the first time we’ve heard what Prince Harry was feeling as the world watched him grieve. When his mom passed, he was only 12, and, he explains that for an entire decade, he thought Diana was faking her death.
He also tells a story about being older and asking his driver to take him through the same tunnel where Diana had the accident, instructing the driver to go the same speed as the vehicle she was in. It’s one of those stories I feel like you can only understand if you’ve suffered a loss.
Part two of the book discusses his time serving in the British Army. He served for ten years, which included two tours in Afghanistan. In the book, he shares details about his time there — much of it is heartbreaking.
This sounds awful, but truthfully, I always assumed his time in the military was more of a title than actual duty. I’ve heard others say he was protected, and maybe he was, but hearing his accounts of what happened made me feel a lot differently about him.
…And then the book gets to part three, when he meets Meghan.
He details how they met, their first few dates, and a trip they took to Bosthwana — honestly, listening to this part was WILD, because their romance was so fast and cinematic.
Once he proposes and they start planning the wedding, however, the narrative turns to, what comes across as a lot of complaining. I’m not saying his complaints are not valid, but most of it is the stuff we all heard in the press (repeatedly) and during their famous interview with Oprah.
Hearing all of it again, even from his perspective, was difficult.
Having said that, however, the book in its entirety is interesting, and I’m glad I listened to it. I appreciate him telling his truth — even if he did get a $20 million payout for it 🙂
The other thing I’ll note before I go is that Harry DOES narrate the audio version of the book. He isn’t my favorite narrator, but you can hear the emotion in his voice during specific parts, which I appreciate.
I also really, REALLY enjoyed him saying at one point that he “smoked a grocery bag full of weed.”
Rock on, Harry.
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