For the first nine weeks, I chose to read Mary, Bloody Mary, written by Carolyn Meyer. Carolyn Meyer was born June 8, 1935. She has written many novels including a series called The Young Royals of which this book is a part. Mary, Bloody Mary was published by Harcourt Publishing Company in 1999. Mary, Bloody Mary is a historical fiction book, consisting of 227 pages. I expected the book to be a summary of Mary Tudor’s life, but learned after my reading it was mostly about her childhood. I chose this book because I have always been interested in England’s Royalty and the title, Mary, Bloody Mary seemed interesting to me. Mary, Bloody Mary is a book about the life of Mary Tudor from childhood to a young adult. The story is told by Mary and includes happy times, outrage, and defiance. Mary is the daughter of King Henry VIII and Queen Catherine. She lived from 1516 to 1558. They also have a son named Fitzroy but he had a different mother. England is a Catholic Empire and strictly follows Catholic Law. The story opens with Mary 9 years old and her betrothal to the King of France, King Frances, a much older man. Betrothals are a promise to marry and were a common practice in that time period. The reader will find many examples of customs throughout the book that are interesting which is a strong point of the book. There are several betrothals of Mary throughout the book, most of which Mary does not approve. At this point of the book, the reader learns of Anne Boleyn. She is a dancer at one of the royal parties and King Henry takes notice of her. Mary discusses her betrothal with her personal aid and servant, Countess Salisbury. Salisbury is more than an aid to Mary; she is also her friend. Having many people around a member of the royal family is also a custom of the time. There were people to dress and undress, cooks, even a priest, and others just being around to act on every request made by a royal family member. At the age of nine, King Henry crowned Mary, Princess of Wales which Mary in line to be Queen of England some day. King Henry seemed proud of his daughter. “The perfect pearl of the world, the jewel of all England” The King said about Mary. King Henry actually wanted a legitimate son to be king after he was gone because he actually felt a woman was not capable of ruling England. Mary continued to live the Princess of Wales and took up a hobby. She learned t