Elisabeth: The Princess Bride, Austria-Hungary, 1853

This was my first Royal Diaries book and I was really pulled in. It was mesmerizing, and so personal, as this historical era came alive. I was eager for more Royal Diaries, and so am now reading "Victoria - May Blossom of Britannia" -- a very soothing book for bedtime.

Fifteen-year-old Princess Elisabeth, called Sisi, is the daughter of Duke Maximilian Joseph of Bavaria and his wife, Princess Ludovica. She has had a carefree childhood in the Bavarian countryside. She spends as much of her days as possible horseback riding, her favorite pastime. But everything changes in the summer of 1857. Sisi's older sister, Helene, has been chosen to marry their cousin, Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria. Their mother is taking Helene to meet Franz Joseph, and has decided to take Sisi along in hopes of finding a husband for her as well. But when Franz Joseph meets Helene and Sisi, he decides it is Sisi he wants to marry. Sisi becomes engaged to Franz Joseph, but she is far too young for the responsibilities she show more suddenly finds herself facing as the future Empress.

This is not one of my favorites from the Royal Diaries series, but it was still an okay that I recommend to fans of the series. I only wish it could have been a little longer, as Elisabeth's diary is only 93 pages. Also, some parts really could have used more detail. show less

The Royal Diaries: Elisabeth the Princess Bride is a fictional diary of the nine months leading to the 16 year-old’s marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph in 1854. The entries are brief, but filled with details of the time period and customs of the royals in those days. This princess clearly has no time for the pomp and circumstance of the royals and would rather talk with the hired help. She is fond of her sister and father, and her mother is tolerant of her. Her aunt Sophie, the Emperor’s mother, is her mother’s sister. The brief courtship, days long, was supposed to be that of the Emperor and Elisabeth’s sister Helene. The entries are entertaining and reveal the independent character the real Elisabeth was. The lure of a diary, show more revealing someone’s inner most thoughts, propels the reader quickly through the text and all too soon it comes to an end. The book contains an epilogue of the miserable existence that followed the wedding of Elisabeth and the Emperor. This princess did not live happily ever after; even her death-a stabbing at 60 years of age- was brutal. The historical notes that follow describe the world happenings – five of Europe’s ruling powers were overthrown when Elisabeth was about 9 years old; it was the age of the Industrial Revolution; the California Gold Rush took place; the telephone was invented; etc. These were the events happening as Elisabeth lived. The historical notes also indicate the downfall of the Habsburg dynasty, of which Elisabeth married into. The monarchs began to disappear as they were replaced with elected officials. The diary notes, comparing them to the history provided seem accurate but there isn’t much mention of the political aspects or issues of the times…perhaps because these are the entries of a 16 year old. The conversations between Elisabeth and the other characters seem like Elisabeth is more of a women’s liberator than a princess. Unfortunately, she was born in the wrong era. There are many pictures of the royal family, notes about the family members and places, as well as a glossary of characters. show less

This was okay. I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars. Not the best one I've read yet, but not the worst. Just a typical book, but I did learn things and I did enjoy it and read it all in about two hours, so that was nice. I would still recommend this to kids because even though it wasn't up my alley, it might be up someone else's and Elisabeth really was pretty interesting.

Written as the diary of Princess Sissi, about her trip escorting her sister to a future engagement, and how Sissi is the one who becomes engaged instead. A great series for young girls!

One feature of the Royal Diaries series is once the story is finished, the author includes a section which is only facts: pictures/portraits of the main characters, family trees, a "What life was like in (insert name) lived" to help the reader distinguish between what we know about the characters, what we assume from artifacts found, and what the author made up to help the story along.

Saturday, September 24, 1853
Finding herself the most important person in the whole household and the constant center of attention is most unnerving and disturbing. She wish it were not so, but there doesn’t seem to be anything she can do to stop it.
She can’t go out anywhere unless everyone knows where she is because there are so may great personages an foreign delegations arriving night and day to meet her…
Possi used to be so serene and calming, but now that she has so much to do, It is far from that. She hardly has any time to spend with her animals, walk in the woods, or even ride with Poppy.
She wishes sge could go back to way things were…

I absolutely love the entire Royal Diaries series. They are all incredibly brilliant. MY favorite are Jahanara, Eleanor and Lady of Ch'iao Kuo. They're a great way to learn history.