Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
5th out of 26 books
—
13 voters
Once Upon a Time: Behind the Fairy Tale of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier
From master storyteller Taraborrelli comes the powerful and moving story of one of royalty's most secretive families, led by Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco, told with passion and sympathy. photos.
Paperback, 632 pages
Published
April 1st 2004
by Grand Central Publishing
(first published April 1st 2003)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
700)
I always wanted to be a princess. Didn’t every girl growing up in the fifties have a “secret” dream about becoming a princess? Actually, I thought Prince Charles (Great Britain) would wait for me. When he finally married I was let down, even though I had been married myself many years by that time. So how could Grace Kelly refuse when a real Prince asked her to marry him?
Grace Kelly was never able to please her parents. It seems her sisters and brothers won all the awards, all the sports competi...more
Grace Kelly was never able to please her parents. It seems her sisters and brothers won all the awards, all the sports competi...more
A solid read. Offers a good overview on Grace Kelly's life before becoming a princess (growing up, issues with parents, being a young actress starting out, becoming a Hollywood star), on the state of Monaco and the Grimaldi family (what a bunch, really!), and on the marriage and family life of Grace and Rainier and their children (many ups, but in general more downs, oh my). Finished this just in time to feel well informed for the upcoming marriage of Albert and Charlotte.
Grace Kelly was such an icon to sophistication, beauty, and class - I remember her mostly for her role in Rear Window playing the girlfriend of Jimmy Stewart in the Alfred Hitchcock classic. I was intrigued by the fact that, although her family was wealthy, they weren't accepted in Philadelphia society due to being Irish and "new money". Her only brother and oldest sister were doted upon and the family had high hopes and expectations of them, yet Grace was not considered to be particularly prett...more
The best bio of Grace and Prince Ranier I've ever seen. The entire book focuses on the highs, the lows and the in-betweens. It reads like a friendly family history written by a close friend. It never is degenerative, but always uses a lense of understanding. Without the 1950's you could not have had Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier. They typified the postwar era and ideals of romance and gender in the Western World. I found this not only interesting from a biographical standpoint, but I also loved...more
A good book on Princess Grace. There is not so much on her movie career, more about how she adjusted to life and marriage as a Princess in Monaco. If you've already read a few biographies on Grace, this one is good in addition to the story as you find out what happens to her children. The author interviewed close friends of Grace, and also clarifies the kinds of rumours which sprung up surrounding her.
It does have some faults, a bit repetitious at times. It is not the absolute best book on Grac...more
It does have some faults, a bit repetitious at times. It is not the absolute best book on Grac...more
This biography was an excellent example of outstanding writing. It was not sensationalized tabloid material but was true to whatever interviews that occurred during Grace Kelly's movie years and her short but powerful role as royalty in Monaco. She suffered an estranged relationship with overbearing parents, a shortened career in Hollywood, and a foreign role as an American woman who lacked understanding and the language of her new life. In her short 26 years as Princess; however, she was able t...more
Grace Kelly is one of my favorite actresses. She was the very definition of elegance and class; not to mention gorgeous. Not only was her career a point of interest but her marriage. Not many actresses got to live the actual Hollywood fairytale and become a real princess. This provides background on her childhood and her rise to Hollywood fame and her marriage and family life. It truly is an honest depiction of her life. I definitely recommend it.
Randy Taraborrelli is a wonderful story teller. A little too wordy - the books he writes are very long but like the ones on the Kennedy family this one is very interesting. Grace Kelly was a wonderful actress and although her life was not a fairy tale prior to her marriage and there were many problems during her marriage - overall it was a fairy tale many young women dream of. She was beautiful, poised, elegant, and charming on the outside and troubled and lonely on the inside
Even with the sad e...more
Even with the sad e...more
I enjoyed this book. I did not know much about Grace Kelly outside of her work in films and that she married a prince and stopped acting. I found the story of her life to be fascinating and also enjoyed learning more about Monaco and the royal history there. I found it incredible that she gave up a career that she loved and was extremely successful at to marry a man she really had only known a short time. Her story was not the fairy tale everyone pictures, but she still had an amazing journey. I...more
I loved the book. It explained many things about her life and tragedies I did not know. She had a not-so-great marriage, a career that ended too soon, many troubles with her children, and a tragic ending. Still, we see the fairytale and love to imagine!
I was pleasantly surprised to read such a detailed synopsis of the life of the Grimaldis. I recommend this book for people who want to go behind the glamor and camera flashes and learn about the real challenges a family faces.
I loved this book. It was interesting to learn about the life of a princess who had been a commoner (and movie star). How she evolved to live as a royal and leave her Hollywood career was fascinating to me.
A great story...really fascinating. However, the author I was not very impressed with. Poor use of language and it was very repetitive at times. I would probably decide against reading another of his books, despite being interested in the content.
I read this for my book club, and I have to say, it takes a certain kind of talent for an author to take what is probably at least a somewhat interesting story and make it INCREDIBLY BORING.
Dec 04, 2008
Catherine
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Grace Kelly fans, anyone interested in the Grimaldis
Great overview (if you can call 400+ pages an overview) of the Grimaldi family. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the royal family of Monaco.
Such a fairytale story! It was a fascinating insight into the life of royalty- Grace Kelly is amazing!! For a non fiction book which I don't tend to read I really enjoyed it.
Great story of a fantasy love affair ....again Hats off to Taraborrelli and his story telling skills!
It’s always enjoyable to read about interesting figures in pop-culture; however one thing I don’t like about biographies set in the present or the recent past, is that towards the end when they get to “the present” it’s often outdated. Reading about Prince Rainier’s future is a little odd since he’s dead!
Another example: I recently saw a biography featuring Charles & Camilla and all the Royal Pundits were unanimous that they could NEVER get married… ever!... kinda stupid now that they’ve bee...more
Another example: I recently saw a biography featuring Charles & Camilla and all the Royal Pundits were unanimous that they could NEVER get married… ever!... kinda stupid now that they’ve bee...more
I was always very fascinated by the life of Grace Kelly and this book did not disappoint.
Loving this - brushing up for my trip next year...
A very elegant story about one classy Princess, enjoyed it.
As far as autobiographies go, this was an edifying and interesting one to read. However, I did not finish it before it was due back at the library, so I was only able to skim the ending.
Good for skimming. Too detailed to read it all.
This was a brilliant read, I really enjoyed it.
So-so.
Found it very hard to get into and ultimately found it a boring read. But to be honest that was probably more to do with the mood i was in. Grace Kelly herself was not a very interesting character, she married the Prince to gain her father's attention and affection. Whilst mothering her own children she turned into the kind of parent that she had detested growing up in a strick Catholic household.
A very well written look at the life and romance of Grace Kelly, and her marriage with Prince Rainier of Monaco. Despite some major flaws, this is one of the better biographies on royalty and fame. Grace Kelly can still fascinate nearly two decades after the world lost her.
For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/content_13111...
For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/content_13111...
What a depressing story! Poor Grace!
great book
Aug 17, 2007
Kara
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Anyone interested in the life story of Princess Grace; those interested in royalty; monaco buffs
I really liked this book - it illuminated Princess Grace's life, with a lot more emphasis on the pre-royalty life. It's a sad story, and it really shows that she wasn't a happy princess. I love bios, and I love Princess Grace, so I of course really liked this book.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Jan 01, 2012 07:15pm