Beyond the Limits: The Lessons Learned from a Lifetime's Adventures

Rating:
Summary: Well-done, but keep a grain of salt handy.
Review: A fantastic book with lots of otherwise unavailable information. A lot of the same ground(at least initially) was covered by B-S in THE LAST HABSBURG. What one needs to remember is that in the course of his research, Brook-Shepherd seems to have become very close to the Habsburg family and his objectivity suffers visibly. Much of this book (as well as B-S's THE LAST HABSBURG and also in THE AUSTRIANS)details the events behind Zita's husband Charles' attempts to recover his lost throne in Budapest in 1921, as well as her son Otto's attempts to recover the Austrian throne in the 1930's. Read these with a critical eye. In both cases a separate reading of Admiral Horthy and Kurt von Schuschnigg's memoirs might be needed to rebut his one-sided and somewhat unfair (to these gentlemen) coverage of these events. Similarly I felt that the topic of restoration of the monarchy, the primary one for that period of the book, and a natural major concern of Zita and her son, is so abruptly dropped after World War II that it seems the author is trying to hide something.

Rating:
Summary: Ranulph Fiennes's lifetime of adventures is documented
Review: Sir Randolph Fiennes has been called the 'world's greatest living explorer': he's spent thirty years circumnavigating the globe, broken many exploration records, and has had both high and low moments in the process, so it's little surprise BEYOND THE LIMITS provides such a fascinating memoir and examination of these points. Ranulph Fiennes's lifetime of adventures is documented in a vivid series of lessons: add color photos and you have an outstanding achievement.


Rating:
Summary: This is a fabulous book on Empress Zita.
Review: This is a magnificently researched book on the Empress Zita of Austria-Hungary. It follows her life from childhood through her marriage to Archduke Karl to their succession as Kaiser and Kaiserin in 1916. The story continues through their all too brief reign which ended with the defeat of Austria in World War 1 and their subsequent deposition and initial exile first in Austria itself and then later in Switzerland and Madeira. It deals with their two thwarted attempts to regain the throne of Hungary which was being 'protected' by Regent Admiral Horthy. The book deals with the tragic early death of Zita's husband, the long widowhood of Zita and the struggles she faced bringing up her large family all by herself. Zita was a complex woman who spent her life trying to uphold the Hapsburg family legacy. Under different historical circumstances she would have been dearly loved by the people of Austria first as an Empress and then a respected Empress Mother. History dealt a difficult hand to Zita and she only received the respect she truly dearly deserved once she had died and was granted an Imperial funeral in St.Stephen's Cathedral. Even the republican government of Austria reluctantly realised that Zita deserved this honour. This book shows the many different faces of this most interesting woman. The author has paid the Empress the most glowing tribute he could ever have imagined as he has depicted not some imaginary idolised royal figure but a real individual who made a difference to this century. I would strongly recommend this book to others. It is a great read. The illustrations are also most interesting with many never having been publicly reproduced before.