Book Review: The Uncommon Reader

Alan Bennett writes a great read with his story of the Queen of England's discovery of what it means to be a reader, and how reading can change a person for good or ill. Her Majesty's journey into books seems like something with which I, and so many, can identify. It is for that reason that the novella's title becomes rather inappropriate. The Uncommon Reader hits the mark so well with the Queen as representative of every reader that she seems not to be an uncommon reader, but rather, every reader. I think it appropriate in this novella that the monarch who is supposed to represent her people becomes the readers' everyman – the reader's monarch.

Whether you agree with this reader or not, The Uncommon Reader is a great story for anyone fond of books.