September 1, 2004
The tributes to the life and career of Lady Diana continue with this lavish production, authorized by her estate and Memorial Fund. Coming as it does with that seal of approval, it should be no surprise to readers that this large, glossy book is tasteful and keenly decorous. It's also rich with photos from just about every one of Diana's 36 years. Many images and testimonies will be familiar to her fans but some----particularly the ones depicting her early years dancing and swimming, attending boarding school and working at her first job--have never been published. Unfortunately, Coward doesn't pair the pictures with captions, so if one isn't familiar with every detail of Princess Diana's history, it can be frustrating to try to decipher what the images show. The text relies primarily on interviews with those who knew (or even briefly encountered) the princess, from photographers to lawyers, fashion designers to fellow aid workers. Predictably, they all speak reverentially of her, but the extensive quotations set the book apart from many Diana biographies and show just how far her influence extended ("All the landmine stuff was jolly brave," says Sandy Gall of Afghanistan Appeal; "She made me more nervous than many military opponents," reflects Colin Powell, who led her to the dance floor at a charity gala for cancer). Coward is careful to show numerous facets of her subject, though the theme of Diana's extensive humanitarian work dominates, while difficulties in her personal life are downplayed. If at times overly worshipful, the book is nonetheless a lovely compilation and a fitting continuation of Diana's legacy, as the book's net royalties will be donated to projects supported by her Memorial Fund.
July 2, 2007
Coward's lavish book, updated for the 10 year anniversary of Princess Diana's death, is a rich but frustrating biography featuring iconic and candid photographs of the People's Princess from throughout her life. Those who've read the recently-released biography by Tina Brown, The Diana Chronicles, will find Coward's Diana a much more sympathetic figure, generally characterized as likable and humane in numerous interviews with friends, family and others who witnessed the power of her care and attention. Focusing largely on her good works, the book gets a new foreword by Nelson Mandela, who notes that "we can all insist, as she did, that nobody deserves to suffer from stigma and prejudice on top of their illness and disability." Unfortunately, the book's design is unwieldy, alternating between pages crammed with tiny, single-spaced text and stretches of largely uncaptioned photographs. Coward's thorough research is commendable, but a stronger edit might have cut less relevant interviewees (like Diana's father's neurosurgeon) in favor of a more detailed look at Diana's long love-hate relationship with the press. Still, the photos collected here, particularly the later portraits that open and close the book, highlight what the young Princess of Wales brought to so many: beauty, warmth and compassion.