I decided to post up my favorite books to the left here, because books are so incredibly important to me. I'd shrivel up and die without them.
One of my favorite books of all time is "Katherine" by Anya Seton. It is a fictionalized version of the true story of Katherine Swynford, one of the most remarkable women of medieval history.
Katherine was the third wife of John of Gaunt, a member of the Plantagenet royal family of England during the 1300's. Although John, Duke of Lancaster, was one of the most influential men of England, he was never king. Through Katherine, however, the entire royal family of England now traces its heritage.
Katherine is one of the most incredible love stories of all time. She was the daughter of a knight from Hainault (present day Belgium) who traveled to England with John's mother when she married his father. Katherine was s lady in waiting to John's first wife Blanche, who died very tragically and quite young. After her death, Katherine and John fell in love, but he remarried Constanza of Castile (Spain) for political reasons.
John and Katherine had four children together. They eventually stopped seeing each other due to a deep sense of guilt over their affair. After Constanza died, John shocked all of England by marrying Katherine for love, a love that spanned 25 years, and making her his Duchess.
Katherine is still in print, many years after its first publication, but you can also easily find it in the library. You will be enthralled with Katherine and John's story, more meaningful because it is true.
