The Queen Mother and Her Century: Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, on Her 100th Birthday

Nora D.S. Robins is liaison librarian in the University of Calgary
Library.

In August 2000, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother turned 100. To mark the
event, Dundurn Press published this large-format, lavishly illustrated
biography.

What distinguishes this biography of a much-documented woman is the
strong Canadian focus. Beginning with the Royal Tour of 1939, the Queen
Mother has made 14 trips to Canada, more than to any other country. Her
last visit was a five-day tour of Toronto, Ottawa, and London when she
was 90 years old. The Canadian visits form the most interesting sections
of the book. The rest of the biography is the straightforward story of
Elizabeth’s life, told in quite laudatory prose.

Arthur Bousfield is the editor of Monarchy Canada magazine and Garry
Toffoli directs the Canada Royal Heritage Trust. They have covered a
number of the Queen Mother’s visits to Canada. Their book,
supplemented by plentiful and eye-catching photographs, is a very
readable tribute to a much-admired woman.