LS5603: Nonfiction2- The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming

1.     BIBLIOGRAPHY

Fleming, Candace. The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion & the Fall of Imperial Russia. Schwartz & Wade Books: New York. 2014. ISBN 978-0-375-86782-8

2.     PLOT SUMMARY

Did Anastasia survive the murder of the Romanovs? Did the holy man Rasputin survive multiple assassination attempts only to die of hypothermia? How did the royal family live in the last years before being toppled by the Bolsheviks? All these questions and more are answered in Candace Fleming’s book about the Romanovs and Russia. Fleming weaves the lives of the Romanovs with the growing unrest and political upheaval in Russia to create an unbiased but compelling view of Russia during the fall of Imperial Russia. Starting with Tsar Alexander II (Anastasia’s great-grandfather) to set the scene, and moving to the last Romanovs, the narrative goes into depth about an area of the world that is not often covered in traditional history books in America.

3.     CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The Family Romanov contains a copious amount of notes. Her bibliography, notes, and index sections are over 30 pages long. Her sources are all primary sources from biographies, journals, and notes from the time period. She also accounts for every single quote in the book in the notes section with which primary source it came from. For help researchers or those interested in further reading, she also included a page about online sources that have authenticated information about the Romanovs and Russia. These pages are also a good place to find more pictures of the Romanov family, as the pictures are the one thing this book seems to have skimped on.

The only disappointment with this book is that the pictures are done in a more traditional way—all together in two sections, making mini-photobooks in the book, instead of spread out throughout the story to illustrate particular instance. However, even though this layout is not the most ideal way to insert pictures to help the narrative, it is still good that the book contains many pictures of the royal family and of Russians.

Besides the unintuitive picture layout, the rest of the book is organized smoothly. Following a chronological time period, it narrates the Romanovs lives, often from journals or from those close to the royal family. Uniquely, it also has excerpts (offset by another color background) about living conditions for the common man at the same time in Russia, which gives a great deal of insight into the class divide that eventually brought about the end of Imperial rule. It acknowledges that one cannot discuss the Romanovs without also discussing the common people and the substandard living conditions they had to endure.

4.     REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Junior Library Guild selection

From The Horn Book- “Fleming has outdone herself with this riveting work of narrative nonfiction that appeals to the imagination as much as the intellect. Her focus here is not just the Romanovs, the last imperial family of Russia, but the Revolutionary leaders and common people as well.”

From Kirkus Reviews – “It’s an astounding and complex story, and Fleming lays it neatly out for readers unfamiliar with the context. […] Award-winning author Fleming crafts an exciting narrative from this complicated history and its intriguing personalities. It is full of rich details about the Romanovs, insights into figures such as Vladimir Lenin and firsthand accounts from ordinary Russians affected by the tumultuous events.”

5.     CONNECTIONS

Other non-fiction books by Candace Fleming:

• The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P.T. Barnum by Candance Fleming and Ray Fenwick, ISBN 0375841970
• Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart, ISBN 0375841989
• The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary, ISBN 0375836187
• Our Eleanor: A Scrapbook Look at Eleanor Roosevelt’s Remarkable Life, ISBN 0689865449
• Ben Franklin’s Almanac: Being a True Account of the Good Gentleman’s Life, ISBN 0689835493

 Follow-up activities

How royalty lives/lived is something of constant fascination to everyone.  Even today, news about the royal family in England makes headlines on a regular basis. Although America never had a royal family, most other (older) countries do. What are those royal families like? Are they still around today? Have your students research other royal families. Did these other families end up the same way? If not, how did they stave off political upheaval? Are there other families who had similar ends (like the French)?

Royals who are still in power today:

• England: Elizabeth II, Queen
• Saudi Arabia: Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, King and Prime Minister
• Kuwait: Sabah Ahmed al-Sabah, Emir
• Qatar: Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Emir
• United Arab Emirates: Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, Emir of Abu Dhabi
• Swaziland: King Mswati III, Ngwenyama
• Brunei: Sir Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan and Prime Minister
• Oman: Sultan Qaboos bin Said, King
• Bahrain: Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa
• Jordan: King Abdullah II
• Morocco: King Mohammad VI
• The Vatican: Pope Francis

Monarchs with some political power reside in Monaco, Thailand, Liechtenstein, Tonga, and Bhutan.

Monarchs who are ceremonial now: Norway, Sweden, The Netherlands, Spain, Greenland, Luxembourg, Belgium, Lesotho, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Japan

Most other countries, like Russia, had monarchs at some point but have since been deposed. These can also be used, as they have much in common with the former Russian government. 

References

Dewey, Caitlin & Max Fisher. Meet the world's other 25 royal families. Washington Post. July 22, 2013. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/07/22/meet-the-worlds-other-25-royal-families/