The Gown

I was eager to read Jennifer Robson's newest novel The Gown (#806).  It's a story centered on the fictitious lives of a couple of embroiderers who worked on the construction of Queen Elizabeth II's wedding gown in 1947 when she was still a young princess and Britain was struggling with the economic hardships and deprivation that followed World War II.

The parts of the novel that dealt with the details of designing and producing the dress in Norman Hartnell's exclusive London atelier were fascinating.  If you enjoy watching the modern royal weddings on TV, or visiting museum costume exhibits, or leafing through books of couture fashions of a by-gone age, you will appreciate the insight into how these gowns are fashioned.

On the other hand, if you're reading it to find out what secrets the two main characters keep that are pursued in the present day by the granddaughter of one, you may be in for a disappointment.  I certainly was.  I could feel my eyes rolling when Miriam (spoiler alert ahead!) turns out to be the Jewish survivor of concentration camp.  Of all the stereotypical characters to needlessly insert here!  Ann came in as a close second in the "He done her wrong" trope.  The fiction here rated no more than a "Meh."

However, it wasn't a terrible book, and it has set me off in search of more information about Norman Hartnell and his design studio.  I look forward to discovering more about him, and some close up photos of Elizabeth II's wedding gown with its fabled embroidery.