The Crown’s Silence by Brooke Newman

Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Crown’s Silence:

It’s kind of their favorite move.

Quick synopsis:

The history of the British monarchy and the slave trade.

Fact for Non-History People:

The British slave trade enslaved and transported approximately 3.1 to 3.4 million Africans between 1640 and 1807.

Fact for History Nerds:

The UK government finished paying off the debt incurred to compensate slave owners for abolition in 2015. Not a typo.

My Take on The Crown’s Silence:

Listen, I am not here to tell you that Brooke Newman’s The Crown’s Silence is a “good time” per se. It would be more accurate to say it is a meticulous and exquisite book which should be required reading. It should be compulsory reading for the British monarchy at the very least.

This may be the American in me, but I feel like slavery has two phases in the history we learn here in the states. First, there is the abhorrent triangle trade while the 13 colonies grew up. The second phase is from the Revolutionary War through the Civil War. In each phase, we have to wrestle with what that means about the founding of our nation and how it reverberates.

You know who gets off pretty easy in looking at it this way? The British monarchy! Unless you are diving deep into the slave trade (highly recommend The Zorg by Siddharth Kara), then you might very well completely miss the part where jolly old England was vital in expanding the trade to monstrous proportions. At the center of it is the royal family who not only profited from it all but were key in keeping it alive.

I would call this book “important.” However, this can often be code for “there is great information in here, but it will bore you to death.” Not so with Newman’s narrative. Besides being very well researched, she makes the plot interesting and engaging. She has a sixth sense in knowing when she has made her point and moving on to the next story. You won’t be bored, but you might be sad and enraged. As we all should be.

(This book was provided as a review copy by Mariner Books.)

Verdict:

Amazing. Buy it here!

If You Liked This Try:

• Tracy Borman, The Stolen Crown