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Regardless of which side you take on this, everyone that cares enough will find this all very sad. I am sure there are lessons to be learned on all sides in this family saga, and no shortage of regrets. Yet one thing I know for sure, we will never get to the real truth because one side will not resort to the petty and sometimes damaging allegations made by Harry, in this book. So William is nothing but an easy open target because he is part of an establishment that “never complains and never explains”, even when his wife is subjected to abuse from the media (much more than Meghan over the years). Unfortunately, Harry doesn’t write very well, which made the memoir feel poorly executed and ill thought - if anything, there were certain details that, I felt, caused more damage than good, as it gave a glimpse of Harry's taste for drama. Every reader will have an opinion about Harry and the Royals after reading this book. The Press was constantly following him as lazy, a drug addict, single with no prospects and actually comparing him to Bridget Jones…really? They talked about his ratty shoes and mismatched outfits. It's such a sad story... its about a family living in a type of emotional poverty they can't even understand.

He gives a couple 'lip service' passages to the evils of colonialism, but overall, he's a proud Brit and a monarchist. The main issue I have that led me to give a 2 star rating is this. Imagine if your sibling wrote a book that was a detailed list of perceived infractions you'd committed against them for your entire lives. Most of us wouldn't come off looking great. I don't doubt Harry feels everything he's written is true, and it may be. Who can say, when reading about private family issues?

This book was revealing, but also frustrating. Harry spares no punches rightfully pointing out where others have done wrong. However, he fails to consistently apply this same critical eye to his own actions. While he sounds like he feels bad for his missteps, he attributes them entirely to his upbringing with little interrogation. For example:

I didn't expect anything less, and that's truthfully why I pirated this book. The Royals are OG colonists. I'm never willingly giving them money. I really enjoyed this on audio!! Over 15 hours in length, it's a big time commitment but listening to Harry share his story in his own words is totally worth it in my opinion!! If this had been fiction, I might have given it 4 stars. It’s actually very well written, and it reads almost like a villain’s origin story, which is always interesting. But since this is a memoir, I got annoyed by how bratty Harry is throughout it. He complains about everything and uses his oh-so-tragic upbringing as excuse to be horrid. He keeps using “the spare” as a crutch, as though being “the spare” should entitle him to something because life had handed him such a bad fate. At one point he even complains that he’s only 3rd to the throne. If I didn’t hate him before, I would now. Immense detail is given to several, seemingly unimportant events. The appearance of rooms, for example, are described wonderfully (much as Harry said they would be, given how his memory works). Quite unfortunately, this measured and careful writing does not extend to some of the more sensitive topics. Unfortunately one of my biggest issues with this book is its credibility. Is the book to explain the narrative? or is the narrative being written to suit and sell a book and his story now?. Had Harry come out at the beginning and stated his case or even hinted at the hurtful and damming accusations he is now making about his family. Had we been given a glimpse of this story he is now pedalling, (with the exception of the media) then the book might have felt more credible, his version more believable. Instead, it feels like it is only after his proposals to become a part time Royal were rejected that he has decided to be angry with his family so much so that he needs to tell the world about it. You would want out of this situation altogether if all this were true - not negotiate a different ‘Royal’ role that would allow you to pursue the celebrity lifestyle and fame that this couple appear to crave. I know what I think but it is up to you to draw your own conclusions.The leaking between the palaces was harrowing. The Queen leaks against her family. Charles leaks against his sons. William leaks against Harry. Harry goes public with private family knowledge in puzzling and unnecessary detail. There are moments when your heart breaks for Harry, like when as boy, he was convinced his mother hadn’t been killed, but that it was a public hoax so that she could start her life over somewhere. Or, when as a young man, he felt the need to go repeatedly through the tunnel in Paris at the same speed that killed Princess Diana.

I think living away from the royal life will be healthy. His smile seems more genuine in the interviews promoting the book than when he was forced before "the wall". For me, his memories of Diana were undermined by petty point-scoring in William and Harry's sibling rivalry. In several startling confessions of their physical rifts, it proved that this picture perfect family was crumbling behind the scenes. But as "Willy and I would turn on each other", I couldn't stop thinking about how William was constantly being presented as the arch nemesis, whilst Harry is the victim. Even when Harry discusses his brother's appearance in the prologue - the "alarming baldness... His famous resemblance to Mummy, which was fading with time" - it felt quite childish and petty, given that Harry mentioned in his recent interview with Tom Bradby that he hoped for reconciliation (not sure that will happen now though, Harry). So they sell access to their experiences, and honestly, I'm not mad at them. I think they are desperately trying to secure enough resources to raise their kids safely. They are also continuing philanthropic work which isn't as helpful as most think but can be noble I guess. Philanthropy is largely a tax haven but I digress.

Ta książka to pokazanie Korony ze strony, która miała pozostać nieznana. Historia, która jednak nie jest na poziomie tabloidów. Nie wiem czy Harry pisał ją sam, jeśli tak to bardzo dobrze mu poszło. The second part is about how proud he was to be an important part of the British Army. He finally felt like he was able to contribute toward helping his country and soldiers.

The little insights were truly interesting and just written as if everyone is bathed by other people, we all walk by our father's room as he's being dressed by his valet, or bagpipes are played at the request of our grandmother. Such a different life! Despite this missed opportunity to reflect, my main issue with the book is one of length and overarching message. It’s ghost-written very well, in such a way that style or flair is sacrificed for ease of consumption. Whose safety do you really care about? The second issue I have is that Harry left the UK to allegedly keep his family safe. I say allegedly because the narrative keeps changing. Even after reading the book, I am still unclear what the current version of events are and what his story is today. At what point will he be or was he telling the truth? Spare bared the similarities to the famous Burn Book from Mean Girls, because the amount of names and gossip that Harry exposes... It is quite unbelievable how much of this great gossip comes from ugly and uncovered truths. He says the otherization of Muslims was part of military education. While without a doubt true, this is also another convenient way to downplay personal responsibility.Putting my own personal thoughts on the monarchy aside, (and the fact that I'm nosy), Prince Harry's "controversial" and "highly anticipated" memoir, Spare, portrays himself as a person, who is breaking generational trauma and a toxic family dynamic (because they should "never complain, never explain").