Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother 1900 - 2002 presents the life of a remarkable woman. A Canadian perspective on a sovereign who created and cultivated a special relationship with Canada, it is the portrait of a queen who always evoked passionate reactions. Whether it was the anonymous soldier who vowed "to fight for that little lady," Adolf Hitler who described her as "the most dangerous woman in Europe," or the Canadian journalist who coined the expression "the Queen Mum," the Queen Mother seldom left people unmoved.

Opening with the royal tour of 1939, during which Canadians first felt her personal magnetism, Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother 1900 - 2002 describes Elizabeth's background and development, relating how she made a marriage that brought her to the centre stage of public life. It traces her tender support of her shy husband, a reluctant king, shows how she began her Commonwealth role, and recalls her shock at the sudden and unexpected call to wear the Crown.

Faced with the never-ending duties of a queen, Elizabeth proved capable of providing inspired leadership for a society faced with the stark prospect of destruction in a war to save the world. On the premature death of her beloved husband she became Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, a role that has shaped nearly half her life, and one in which Canada has always played an important part. The authors analyze Her Majesty's successes and failures, both public and private, against the background of a century of violent disruption, material achievement, and incredible change.

The half-century since Elizabeth II's coronation in 1952 has witnessed many changes, some for good and some for ill. Among these, she has been one of the few constants.

Fifty Years the Queen recounts her amazing life as Canada and the Commonwealth celebrate the Golden Jubilee of her accession to the throne. Elizabeth II is a figure whose faultless devotion to duty flourishes in an age of individual self-gratification. endowed with high spirits and a great sense of humour, she at the same time carries out her duties with unfailing dignity and decorum.

The special Golden Jubilee tribute is filled with many beautiful illustrations, including some rarely seen.

Beautifully illustrated, this book looks at the nine women who have been Princesses of Wales. From Joan, the "Fair Maid of Kent," through the tragic Katharine of Aragon, Henry's VIII's first wife, and the tempestuous Caroline of Brunswick, the mistreated wife of George IV, to the present fairy-tale, headline-catching Princess, their stories are told with insight and compassion.