Lilibet the Brave: Book Review

On September 8, 2022, “Lilibet” passed away at age ninety-six. If you want to share with your children about her fascinating life before she became Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning British monarch in history, then Lilibet the Brave is the book for you.

The Author and Illustrator – Katy Rose

Trained in psychology and art, Katy Rose says she works “to bring depth and meaning to each of my paintings. As a certified Therapeutic Art Coach, it’s a joy to use art as a God-given means of hope and healing through my weekly art class with survivors of human trafficking.

I especially love digging for stories from the past that might inspire us today. Whether I’m writing a children’s book or a blog post, gathering stories from travels or from faithful people who have gone before, I love finding all the little gems that nudge us forward, reminders that despite limitations and weakness, we can persevere in love, hope, and service.”

Rose adds: “Currently, my most important work is with my own four children, who inspire every bit of my creative process, along with my incredible husband. Our personal journey intertwines with our advocacy work within the foster care system and victims of trafficking.”

Katy Rose sounds like someone from whom I’d like to hear more. She has published four books thus far. Lilibet was her second publication. The illustrations are exquisite and vary between black-and-white and watercolor sketches.

You can read more about Rose and see her work at https://katyrosecollection.com/.

Lilibet the Brave’s Younger Years

The subtitle for this 64-page picture book biography is The Unusual Childhood of an Unlikely Queen. Even though it is written for children aged 5 – 10, older readers will also enjoy learning about the life of a real princess.

When Elizabeth Mary Alexandra Windsor was a toddler, she mispronounced her name. Her family began affectionately calling her the name she called herself, Lilibet.

Children will delight in hearing about Lilibet’s childhood with tales of a loving family and the games she enjoyed playing with them. But, life wasn’t perfect. She struggled with sewing, French lessons, and biting her nails. She dreamed of marrying a farmer and raising animals. She preferred dirty play clothes over frilly gowns.

Lilibet was not initially destined for the throne. After her grandfather’s death, her uncle was next in line for the throne. But he decided he did not want to be king. So, the strenuous job fell to Lilibet’s Papa. This caused Lilibet’s life to change. It meant less time for family fun and more time for eleven-year-old Lilibet’s training for someday becoming the future Queen.

The author does a beautiful job writing and illustrating the beauties, the challenges, and the mishaps of Lilibet’s training years.

WWII Years and Marriage for Lilibet

One of my passions is learning about the cooperative efforts of the WWII home front. Katy Rose covers in-depth what life was like in Great Britain during WWII. She includes Lilibet’s active roles, from conservation efforts to army service.

After the war, Lilibet marries Philip, and they later have two children.

Eventually, and much earlier than she anticipated, Lilibet, at age twenty-five, inherited the throne and the heavy responsibilities that came with it.

The book includes several quotes by Lilibet, including a brave promise she made at the age of twenty-one:

I declare before you all,

That my whole life,

Whether it be long or short,

Shall be devoted to your service.”

Full Circle

Lilibet the Brave is packed with captivating and educational information. The author’s writing is excellent, bringing the story full circle. From the early pages describing Lilibet’s childhood, she writes:

“Since she was now the future Queen, more schoolwork was added.

She must be able to speak

with world leaders confidently.

She must represent her country

with grace.

She needed immaculate manners, pristine poise, and the nicest handwriting (not too slanty)

for all her letters.

Being a princess was getting harder.

And lonelier.”

Then, the author closes the story with:

“And she kept her promise, serving longer than any king or queen in the history of her country.

She spoke confidently with world leaders. She represented her country with grace.

She had immaculate manners, pristine poise, and lovely handwriting (not too slanty) for her thousands of letters.

But she wanted to do more.”

The author adds a few more things to the list before ending this enlightening and endearing story.

Recommendation

I highly recommend this book. I discovered several facts I did not know about Queen Elizabeth–especially about her childhood years. Plus, it emphasizes important concepts such as compassion, etiquette, and patriotism.

Due to its length, the book may need to be broken down into portions when reading to younger children, but they will find the content intriguing.

Also, older readers will find an engaging section of additional information at the back of the book. And, of course, there’s a bibliography for this nonfiction book.

Queen Elizabeth was not perfect, but she was extraordinary—and brave. A note from the author in the book expresses this sentiment: “I believe Queen Elizabeth’s greatest strength was her faith in God, whom she knew to be infinitely stronger than herself, and to whom she entrusted the days of her historic reign. She believed in the way of Jesus, full of love, compassion, and service. He was the ultimate example of reaching out to help, even when it was hard.”

EXTRAS:

You can read a beautiful testimony by the author of Lilibet, posted on Ann Voskamp’s website. The title of Katy Rose’s guest post is “Shots Fired Don’t Mean We Fall (& 3 Ways We Keep Moving Forward)”.

Plus, I’ve created a free activity sheet for your princess-in-training. Here is the link to the “Queen Page” pdf.

Motivated by the power of story, history, and His Story, Sally Matheny’s passion is telling the next generation wondrous things.
Her nonfiction writing appears in worldwide, national, and regional publications including Appleseeds, Clubhouse Jr., Homeschooling Today, and The Old Schoolhouse.
She and her husband live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and are blessed with three children, two sons-in-law, and armfuls of grandbabies. Connect with Sally on several social media sites, but her favorite hangouts are at SallyMatheny.com and Pinterest.