First comes love, then comes marriage - unless we're talking about our ancient monarchy, of course. With them, there's always a shower of books involved, as well.
The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton looming Friday will be a major global broadcasting event - some estimates suggest as many as two billion people will be tuning in - and it's a given that many of them will want to read about the happy couple, as well. Ever since the engagement was announced Nov. 16, publishers have been racing to release a slew of books about the biggest royal love story since the last ``wedding of the century,'' the nuptials of Lady Diana Frances Spencer to Charles, Prince of Wales, back in 1981. And we all know how that one turned out.
I can't explain it; I certainly don't condone it. I can only offer a quick rundown of just some of the titles out there - most of them gushing fluff.
* William and Kate: A Royal Love Story, by Christopher Andersen (Gallery, $29.99)
The American journalist promises to recount the intimate details of the celebrated courtship and offer a glimpse of the husband and wife - and future king and queen - they will become: Anderson has written several celebrity biographies, including The Day Diana Died.
* Kate: The Making of a Princess, by Claudia Joseph (Key Porter, $19.99)
The British journalist draws on exclusive interviews with members of Kate's family and friends for an authoritative account of Kate Middleton's life so far. The book apparently reveals how she ``displays all the poise and breeding expected from the wife-to-be of the heir to the throne.''
* William & Kate: Celebrating a Royal Engagement, by Robin Nunn (Pavillion, $27.95)
In a series of pictures, many of which are brought together here for the first time, a leading royal photographer examines the intertwined lives of William and Kate.
* The Royals: Prince Williams & Kate Middleton, a graphic novel, by author C. W. Cooke and artist (Bluewater Productions, $9.99)
A 40-page pictorial look behind the curtain at the prince and his soon-to-be bride.
* Kate & Wills Up the Aisle, by Alison Jackson (Quadrille Publishing, $15)
The British artist, photographer and filmmaker presents a humorous folio of photographs as a chronological retelling of the romance and the run-up to the royal wedding.
* The Kate Middleton Handbook - Everything You Need to Know about Kate Middleton, by Darlene Halliburton (Tebbo, $19.66)
Reputed to be the ultimate resource for all things Kate.
* William & Kate: The Love Story: A Celebration of the Wedding of the Century, by Robert Jobson (John Blake, $30.95)
From NBC's veteran royal journalist, the man who broke the story that Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles were to wed in 2005, a true insider's account of the couple's fairy-tale romance. With photos by Niraj Tanna.
* William And Kate: A Royal Love Story, by James Clench (UK General Books, $24.99)
Written by the royal correspondent for Britain's tabloid giant The Sun and containing 150 photographs from Arthur Edwards, the newspaper's royal photographer. Probably the first book off the mark, if that counts for anything. The titular couple announced their engagement on a Tuesday; Clench's book about them went to press the following Friday.
* LIFE: The Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton (Life, $22.95)
The editors of Life carry on the magazine's long tradition of covering all the lavish royal weddings since even before Queen Elizabeth II wed in 1953. This book includes intimate pictures of William and Kate as they grew to adulthood and a pictorial best-of selection from royal weddings that have already been, including those of Charles and Diana, Grace Kelly and Rainier of Monaco, Fergie and Andrew, and many others.
* Royal Romance, Modern Marriage: The Love Story of William and Kate, by Amy Gail Hansen (Triumph Books, $18.95)
From the author of the riveting Taylor Swift biography, an account of: the couple's on-again, off-again eight-year courtship; their Kenyan holiday engagement; and all the up-to-date ceremony details.
* William and Harry: The People's Princes, by Ingrid Seward (Carlton Publishing Group, $33.71)
Seward, author of The Queen and Di, takes a close look at Charles and Di's progeny, Prince William (the heir) and Harry (the ``spare''), in this dual biography.
* Knit Your Own Royal Wedding, by Fiona Goble (Andrews McMeel Publishing, $21)
Something a little different, this is a guide to knitting dolls of William and Kate, the Queen, Prince Harry, other members of the royal family, and even a cute little corgi. The background scene, which fits into a pocket in the back cover, is an illustrated fold-out of Westminster Abbey.
* William And Kate: The Royal Wedding: A Paper Doll Book (Ladybird, $10.99)
Not into knitting? Celebrate royalty's most glamorous couple with this paper- doll book, featuring lifelike cut-out figures of William and Kate, and a variety of outfits to mix and match.
Edmonton Journal
rhelm@edmontonjournal.com
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