Prince Harry’s Memoir Is in Danger of Being ‘Drowned out’ by Other Books — Expert
TL;DR:
- Prince Harry is reportedly releasing his memoir in late 2022.
- A royal expert says “Prince Harry fatigue” may have already set in by the time it debuts.
- The reason is other books on Prince Harry will have already hit shelves.
Prince Harry’s not the only one writing about his life. A royal expert says that alone could cause a problem when his highly anticipated memoir eventually debuts. What problem exactly? That no one will care because various people will be “telling different versions” of his “truth.”
Prince Harry’s memoir doesn’t have an official release date
Publisher Penguin Random House hasn’t revealed a release date for Harry’s memoir. The father of two announced a forthcoming “truthful and accurate” account of his life in July 2021. The announcement listed the release date as “tentatively” late 2022. Since then, further details have yet to be released.
Celia Walden described it as a pre-publication campaign “strategy” in The Telegraph with a “shock drop” and “radio silence followed by a bombardment of Hazza revelations” in an effort to boost sales.
Numerous books are hitting shelves before the memoir’s expected release, may create ‘Prince Harry fatigue’
However, “there’s a problem with this strategy,” Walden said. Harry’s memoir is one of the multiple books on the duke — and the royal family — to debut in 2022.
“The tone has been set by Tom Bower, the author of last month’s headline-grabbing Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War Between the Windsors,” Walden said, referring to the July 2022 tell-all, complete with controversial claims about Harry and the royal family.
Walden also noted author Catherine Mayer will be publishing an updated version of her Prince Charles biography, Charles: The Heart of a King, in August 2022. Although it’s about Harry’s father, it’s said to include “‘previously unpublished details’” on “‘Harry and Meghan’s exit.’”
That’s not all. The releases will continue into September 2022 with Valentine Low’s Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind the Crown. Then, in November 2022, there will be what Walden described as a “double whammy.”
“In November, comes a double whammy from two well-known royal experts,” she said. Katie Nicholl will release a “forensic examination of the firm” in her book, The New Royals. Additionally, Angela Levin’s debuting a biography on Harry’s stepmother, Camilla Parker Bowles.
“Again, both are expected to include versions of Megxit,” Walden added. She continued, saying considering Levin’s criticism of Meghan Markle and Harry, not to mention rumors Harry’s book will reflect negatively on the Duchess of Cornwall, Levin’s book probably won’t be kind to the couple.
“It’s enough to make me feel a stab of pity for the prince,” Walden said. “Imagine having ‘your truth’ drowned out by a load of other people, all telling different versions of that truth, all collectively prompting Harry Fatigue?”
Prince Harry might walk back his memoir
Changes might be on the way for Harry’s memoir. Richard Kay, a Daily Mail columnist and friend of Princess Diana’s, told True Royalty TV’s The Royal Beat, Harry might be having “second thoughts.”
“There is still that possibility that the entreaties of the royal family have not fallen on deaf ears, and that Harry is having second thoughts about when he publishes this book at all,” he said.
Kay shared Harry’s participation in the writing process supposedly ended around January 2022. At the time, he said, Harry was “still at peak rage” when he gave interviews.
“That was really when Harry was still at peak rage with Britain, with the royal family, with his sibling and family,” he said, adding there’s been “rapprochement” in the months since.
“We saw it at the Jubilee, there was a bit of an attempt by Harry to sort of wind it down a bit,” Kay said. “Will he want to readjust what he’s written? All these things must be going through his mind.”
