The Uncommon Reader

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett  120 pp.

This novella by the playwright of "The History Boys" and "The Madness of King George" asks the question "What would happen if the Queen of England suddenly began reading for pleasure?" I don't know if Elizabeth II enjoys a good novel now or then or not although I hear she is a fan of crossword puzzles. However, in this story she suddenly renews an interest in reading after discovering a mobile library van parked at the palace. Out of politeness, she checks out a book and it's all downhill from there. She promotes a cook's assistant she meets at the van to be her assistant in procuring books. Soon she abandons her legendary promptness to be late for engagements because she was busy reading. Ultimately she realizes she would much rather be reading than making tedious public appearances. All this creates a crisis in the government and various plots to curtail her reading surface, to no avail. The ending is an amusing surprise.