Kristiana Gregory

I loved this book when I was like 11, so much so that I still own it and intend to keep it forever, but did anyone ever notice just how creepy Mark Antony is?

Like, dang man, you're like almost thirty and she's literally half your age, and is going through puberty, so can you refrain from flashing her and drunk kissing her in the darkness? That's literally sexual harrassment, not romantic.

I know this is supposed to be like, pseudo-historical, but could they have made her a little bit older? show more Even 18 would have been better, so it isn't so pervy. Or since this is a book for children, they could have, idk not written that storyline?
Other than that, I loved this book and still read it sometimes just to feel nostalgic. show less

Two stars because the writing was absorbing.
If I had wanted to read about a princess in ancient Rome, I would have picked up a book that fucking took place in ancient Rome. I wanted Egypt! I wanted sandy deserts, Egyptian gods, Arabic and Aramaic, and an education on parts of history. Instead, noooo I got water water sailing my sisters hate me water I have a leopard oh Julius is cute look at Marc Antony. Like wtf. Over half the book takes place in ancient Rome, where the character is...not show more my idea of a princess in ancient Egypt. It apparently lines up with a specific part of her childhood, but was not what I wanted as a reader perusing ancient Egypt.
Cleopatra, as written in this novel, doesn't sound twelve. She had two brothers, both named Ptolemy, and two sisters, Bernice and Arsinoe. So the super evil sister, whose name escapes me, in the novel didn't exist in real life.

What's with the instalove? Why does she develop crushes on men who are so much older than her? I'm not saying it can't happen at all. But why, within the confines of this story? Was it because the author needed to hammer in as much well-known knowledge and figures as she could? Glass windows did exist in Rome, but they were not the glass windows of today. They were thin and barely transparent, not the translucent ones of today. Horseshoes did exist, as did the game of horseshoe throwing, but...not really. The book portrays them in a much more modern sense. Pet collars did exist the way they are portrayed here, but eh...just super rare and it's off-putting in this book. It doesn't make Cleopatra seem extravagant or wealthy. It makes me think "the author loves her cat and put her in a fictionalized version of ancient Egypt." Quick research indicates Cleopatra may well have owned a cat, but it was probably an African wildcat, not a leopard.

Why underline certain words rather than put them in italics? .

WHY was there Christian coding and an emphasis on Jesus? That didn't happen for fifty-eight more years! This was super out-of-place and preachy. Which, now that I think about it, was probably the author's intent. Why wasn't Bastet mentioned? Isis was mentioned a handful of times, and not in a thoroughly theological manner.

This...is not an interesting time in Cleopatra's life. Other Royal Diaries and My Name is America books have girls that are sometimes fourteen or fifteen, even seventeen. I feel like if this had been written with Cleopatra at fourteen, the author could have done more. She could have written a far more engaging and dynamic story while sticking to real history, but chose not to. She wrote this instead, and it's lazy writing. show less

This was the first or second book I read of the series and its spinoffs (Royals plus a few of the My Name is America books). I have a definite soft spot for it, and was pleased to discover I hadn't outgrown it. Still a really good historical fiction diary, and what a way to write! Most of the action takes place over three months, but feels much longer. The descriptions were vivid as ever, the stakes just as high. I shook my head at the teenagers and was shocked they were marrying so early, show more and with their parents' consent. It was a different time, indeed. I was fascinated at the references to other trails and groups and how they were approached. When the Donner party was first mentioned, I thought of the Youtube video by Caitlin Doughty, which examines the events with modern knowledge. That made it even sadder. I laughed when Hattie discovered Pacific NW weather for the first time (born and raised Seattle, here), and crowed, "You're Southern and the sun's never gonna appear again!" I was teasing a fictional teen, but it's fun to poke fun at people who don't know what a sun break is. I had fun reading this again. I'm glad I was able to get it at my library. show less

Of the four "Royal Diaries" I've read, this one was by far the best. Maybe it was because Cleopatra's life as a child was so much more interesting than that of Anastasia Romanova or Marie Antoinette or Isabel of Aragon, or, since there was less known about Cleopatra's childhood, the author was able to use more imagination in making Cleopatra a personality who was capable of and did rule Egypt.

Kristina Gregory used as much actual history and events as she could, but what Cleopatra actually show more thought about her father, her older sister, her personal fears and ambitions are, of course, speculative. Nevertheless, it is a wild, frightening and believable story.

Some may wonder whether the events are appropriate for 8-10 year-olds for whom this series is aimed, but I feel that showing how a girl of 12 was able to maneuver and survive (at least through her adolescence) attempts on her life, her father's alcoholism, the contempt of the Romans by using her intellect is uplifting. The extra information at the endof the book and the pictures of the main characters also feeds the imagination. show less