Title: Queen Eleanor : Independent Spirit of the Medieval World Author: Brooks, Polly Schoyer Houghton Mifflin Co. Reprint edition (October 1999) Paperback - 192 Pages ISBN: 0395981395 Dimensions (in inches): 0.58 x 8.23 x 5.48

Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the most fascinating women of the Middle Ages. Born in 1122 to Duke William of Anjou, she was his sole heir. When King Louis the Fat lay dying, it was his wish that she marry his son, Louis. Louis was not meant to be king. As a second son, he had studied for the church. His monastic life did nothing to prepare him for marriage, certainly not to someone as independent and vibrant as Eleanor. At the age of 15, she and Louis wed and she became Queen of France. She brought to the French court her love of music and poetry, and the ideals of courtly love that our Society still cherishes. She was not happy in the marriage, and constantly embarassed Louis with her outspoken ways. She scandalized the nation when she accompanied him on the Second Crusade, and their quarrels lead to their eventual divorce.

Only a year before ending her marriage, Eleanor met Duke Henry of Normandy, a young man over 10 years her junior. It made no difference. Six weeks after her divorce from Louis, Eleanor married Henry, who would ascend the English throne two years later. Although their marriage was initially a happy one, Eleanor came to resent Henry's other women and manuevered her sons to rebel against their father. Henry eventually imprisoned Eleanor in Slaisbury castle, where she stayed for nearly 15 years until his death in 1189. Her favorite son, Richard the Lion Heart, became king, but died 10 years later. John succeeded him, and we all know how that turned out!

Eleanor is responsible for many improvements in the life of the English, including instituting jury trials. At the age of 80, she fought off a siege of her castle by her grandson Arthur. She died at the age of 82, a force to be reckoned with.

Title: Behind the Mask: The Life of Queen Elizabeth I Author: Thomas, Jane Resh Clarion Books (October 1998) Hardcover - 208 Pages ISBN: 0395691206 Dimensions (in inches): 0.82 x 9.56 x 7.34

Elizabeth was the second surviving daughter of Henry VIII. Her mother, Anne Bolelyn, was beheaded when Elizabeth was only 3 years old. She spent her early years literaly not knowing if she would be alive from one day to the next. She came to the throne at the age of 22, upon the death of her older sister Mary. She would spend the next 45 years ruling England during a time of tremendous social and political upheavel.

Thomas presents the complex life of this woman in a scholarly but very entertaining work. It is illustrated with portraits and woodcuts from Elizabethan works. Both titles are available from your local library.