I bought this book at a charity shop in Markham, Ontario late in 2016. I brought it home to Cambridge and read it.

I was very excited when I found this book in the store. I have always had a strong interest in our Royal Family and in history at large, especially the Second World War era. Also, it has always particularly struck me that our Queen enlisted and served during the war when, as a princess, she didn't have to and it would have been much easier for her not to. It always struck me that the princess, the King, and the Queen had the same argument/debate that took place in homes all around the world at that time-- in a somewhat different context from most of those conversations of course, but the same argument once it's all boiled down-- with the parents wanting to protect their children and the young adults saying "This is something I have to do for myself, for the country and people and way of life that I love, and for the future."

As for the book itself, I enjoyed it. I thought that the author did a good job of tone and voice, from anything I've ever learned about the personalities of the actual people involved. The story has a big focus on the relationship between our now Queen and Prince Philip, which I also liked because, as I said, I have an interest in our Royal Family and I've always been a fan of them as a couple. They will have been married for 70 years this year! It would be amazing to get to celebrate that kind of a milestone with your spouse!

As my own way of celebrating Canada's sesquicentennial this year, I have chosen to dedicate my bookcrossing activity to reading and sharing Canadian stories/literature-- books set in Canada, books by Canadian authors, books about Canada and/or its people. This book is by a British author and is set in the UK, but as the woman it's about is the Queen of Canada as well, this story is a part of our history and I'm pleased to include it in my Canada 150 project!

Since we celebrated HM's Sapphire Jubilee this past week, and since I think today is the anniversary of her joining the ATS (which is the British equivalent of our CWAC), I thought today would be a good day to release this book. I considered various places to leave this and in the end I decided that the CWAC monument would be the best/most appropriate place, paying tribute to both our Queen and to her sisters-in-arms. I left the book propped against the statue's foot.

If you've found this book, thanks for picking it up and checking out its journal! If you're new to bookcrossing, welcome. We'd love it if you'd stick around with us a while. I really hope that you enjoy both this book and the whole bookcrossing experience!

This book was released as part of the 2017 "52 Towns in 52 Weeks" Release Challenge. Kitchener was Town #5 for me this year!