Catherine de Valois

By: Laurel A. Rockefeller

Narrated by: Richard Mann

Length: 1 hr and 9 mins

Publisher's Summary

Best known as Henry V's Agincourt bride from Shakespeare's Henry V, Catherine de Valois was an extraordinary woman of faith, courage, and conviction in an age of politically powerful women. 

A younger daughter to King Charles VI of France terrorized by his mental illness, Princess Catherine survived the ravages of his schizophrenia, a civil war at home, and King Henry's war with France to become one of England's most fascinating and courageous queens. Her second marriage to Owen Tudor gave England a new dynasty through her grandson, King Henry VII. 

Meet the real Catherine and discover the beautiful true story that launched the most famous dynasty in history. 

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2014 Laurel A. Rockefeller (P)2015 Laurel A. Rockefeller

A taste to get you hooked on history

Note: Even though this is Book 2 in the series, it works just fine as a stand alone.

Princess Catherine was daughter to France’s King Charles VI, who suffered from mental illness. During her lifetime, she knew the hardships of France’s civil war and England’s King Henry V’s repeated warring in France. Married off to King Henry, peace between the two countries lasted briefly. After King Henry V’s death, Catherine married a Welsh man, Owen Tudor.

Before giving this book a listen, I knew very little about Queen Catherine. This is a great way to get introduced to this historical figure. The author uses touches of drama here and there to bring this bit of history to life. Since this book is only 69 minutes long, only the highlights of Queen Catherine’s life are covered. However, it is apparent from the beginning that Catherine comes from a line of women known to speak their minds, whether they are speaking to a man or a woman, a peasant or royalty.

This book is classified as creative non-fiction by the author, a classification or genre that is new to me. With that said, the book reads like a historical fiction and is not dry like many straight histories are are. If folks are a bit intimidated by histories or historical fiction, this series of books is a great place to get started.

I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks!

The Narration: Once again, Richard Mann has a very nice voice to listen to. He even gives a little singing here and there as the book requires. He has distinct voices for all the characters, and a good range for the male voices. His female voices could use a touch more femininity.

2 people found this helpful

Great listening and wonderful presentation!

Would you listen to Catherine de Valois again? Why?

Yes. I found the material to be quite fascinating. I really enjoy stories from history.

What did you like best about this story?

I found the subject matter to be very interesting.

Which character – as performed by Richard Mann – was your favorite?

The title character, Catherine, was my favorite. It was her story.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Intrigue behind the throne

1 person found this helpful

Interesting historical telling

I loved this reading. The story kept me interested. This was a gift for review.

1 person found this helpful

loved it

Would you listen to Catherine de Valois again? Why?

i prefer to read my books as opposed to listening to them, but i loved Mr Mann'a boice for this book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Catherine de Valois?

to me it was all memorable. you can tell this author did her research before writing this book.

What about Richard Mann’s performance did you like?

i loved the personality in his voice as well as the different characters

Any additional comments?

I loved this book. You can tell this author did her research and loves history. This story starts off with Margaret Beaufort and opens with her marrying Edmund Tudor. this is on Catherine de Valois' life and i find it utterly facinating. The voive narator for this book was the perfect match as well. I loved his voice and the changes per character.

1 person found this helpful

Delightful and educational:rare combo

Clear and fascinating rendition of the life and times of a remarkable woman. Married once for politics and once for love, true to her loyalties to France and to her son, an English king. The tale is presented in a personable manner, thereby robbing it of the feeling of dry European history.
RM does a terrific audio performance which further enlivens the characters, including brief French carols. Well done!

1 person found this helpful

History reenacted

I love how it was a story within a story. Her storytelling will draw you in and teach you without you even knowing it is happening.

Great read

I enjoyed this story of Catherine De Valois. I am fascinated by historical figures and love to learn about them. This was a very enjoyable way to do so. The author is very talented to be able to turn a simple history listen in to an enjoyable story
Richard Mann was amazing with the narration. He moves so easily in between characters and brought the emotion through

I was not a fan of the music and singing- well let me rephrase that. I loved it- but not in a book. It was distracting for me and I felt it disrupted the story. This is strictly a personal choice that we each have. I still completely enjoyed the story

Catherine de Valois

Looking for a good short well told story, then this is the story for you. I enjoyed this story.😎

A peek into the life of Catherine De Valois

I have always had a passing interest in European historical figures, being born and raised in a Commonwealth country, Australia, European and English history were taught in our education system as a matter of course, but were so dry and lifeless that it did not ring true to me that they were actually people living their lives and making decisions.
This story and the other in the series that I have listened to is short but by no means dull. Laurel has written in the story such a way that the characters come to life and even though only just a tad over an hour long it is packed full of the life and death choices made by the Royal lineages from the time.
It is a well written book and Richard Mann’s silky smooth voice is perfectly suited to this type of story which is part creative non-fiction based around fact. If only history books in schools could teach this way by using stories rather than dull lifeless facts and figures. After all, famous figures from the past had lives too and this is what I feel is missing from history education, I certainly learnt more from this book about Catherine by the simple fact that it was interesting to envision her as a person with hopes, feelings and dreams just like us than I did from any dusty history text in school.
I am looking forward to listening to more in this series as it has re-ignited my interest in history.
I was given a copy of this book by the author for no charge in return of an honest, unbiased review.

Another home run

I truly believe that no matter what book you get by Laurel A. Rockefeller you cant go wrong. She is such a gifted author, no matter whom she writes about you cant help but to be sucked into their world. This story will keep you interested from start to finish. There is no doubt that the author has spent many hours researching these people and their time period. I am looking forward to other books by this author.

A striking woman who we can learn a lot from

Where does Catherine de Valois rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's definitely one of my favourites. I'd say it's definitely up there with Laurel's book on Boudicca. I love how I knew nothing about this striking women, but after listening to this audiobook, I feel like I actually knew her!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Catherine de Valois?

I think it's definitely how Laurel shows what an out-spoken woman Catherine was for the time. It's clear by all the mens reactions that this was unheard of, but it comes across really well. I love how effortlessly it comes across that this is a woman not to be trifled with - a royal woman with a spine!

Have you listened to any of Richard Mann’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Yes, I've also listened to Boudicca: Britain's Queen of the Iceni. I loved his narration in that book, and I love it even more in this one! I love how effortlessly he can show emotions in his narration, it's different for every character; whether it's a woman, man or child. His voice changes perfectly to suit the tension levels.
One of my favourite parts of his narration was Mann's performance of Veni at the beginning and end of the book... the music is just so beautiful and moving. It's easy to get lost in it!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes, when the young Catherine stands up the the stranger-king of England. She doesn't know him, only of his reputation. It takes guts to do something like that and she does it without hesitation and without fear of consequences. I love how Laurel captures Catherine's character in this scene... Catherine has such a strong sense of morals and it really comes through when she's telling the king what's what. I'm surprised he didn't faint due to being spoken to like that! I found it quite refreshing.

Any additional comments?

I really like the way Rockefeller adds in the dates subtly in the narration. They don’t get in the way at all like they’ve been forced in, instead they flow really nicely and fit in perfectly. I think this is a really good idea, especially for kids, because it makes the book a little bit more educational for the young’uns. I think due to this you could even test them with a paper or something to make sure they’ve read it properly.
Story wise, I really appreciated the way the book comes across. With it being told like a story, and not knowing anything about Catherine, I really liked this because I could follow her history a lot better! I’m not being confused with a bunch of jargon, it’s explained simply and it’s entertaining at the same time.
Again, it’s a short book but it’s packed with facts and information. It’s the perfect length if you want to know about Catherine de Valois but don’t have a lot of time. I’d definitely recommend it.

1 person found this helpful

Amazing story, and even more fantastic narration

This was a well-written, and very well researched book; great for children and adults alike who have an interest in history.

On top of that, Richard Mann's narration is fantastic; he really brings the characters to life. And the parts where he sings... WOW! I thought his narration was great, but his singing is beyond amazing.

Between the fantastic story the author has written, and the amazing job of the narrator, this was an exceptionally wonderful listening experience, and I would highly recommend it.

1 person found this helpful

Ok but not much substance

Not an in-depth look at Catherine De Valois but ok as a brief introduction of her and her place in history

Catherine de Valois

Any additional comments?

Richard Mann does a fine job of narrating this story of Catherine,the daughter of a king,wife of a king and the mother of another king.A very interesting short book to listen to."I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast or MalarHouse dot com"