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Prince Harry’s book Spare is on sale NOW: All the memoir details and how to get a free download
Prince Harry’s book was already a number one bestseller before it was even released
Prince Harry‘s candid memoir, aptly titled SPARE, is on sale NOW! We’ve been desperate to read it since we heard it was in the works, and finally, the day has arrived! Don’t know about you, but watching Harry and Meghan’s Netflix documentary made us even more excited!
Interestingly, it turned the 38-year-old royal into a best-selling author before it was even released. Yes, his highly-anticipated book soared to the top of the book charts on pre-orders alone.
Keep reading for everything you need to know about the memoir – plus find out how to get a free download.
VIDEO: Prince Harry and Meghan’s year in review for 2022
RELATED: Princess Kate’s connection to Prince Harry’s memoir ‘Spare‘ revealed
The emotionally powerful story is a must-read for those desperate to know what life was really like for Prince Harry growing up within the royal household. The book focuses on his remarkably moving personal journey from trauma to healing, and one that speaks to the power of love as shares details about meeting his future wife, Meghan Markle.
SPARE by Prince Harry, £14 / $36, Amazon
The press release about the book read: “SPARE takes readers immediately back to one of the most searing images of the twentieth century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow—and horror. As Diana, Princess of Wales, was laid to rest, billions wondered what the princes must be thinking and feeling—and how their lives would play out from that point on. For Harry, this is his story at last.
MORE: 10 biggest-selling royal books of all time: Prince Harry to Princess Diana, Queen Elizabeth & more
“With its raw, unflinching honesty, SPARE is a landmark publication full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.”
Prince Harry at his mother’s funeral alongside his brother and his father, King Charles
The on-sale date was January 10, 2023.
The record-breaking book became the fastest selling non-fiction book ever, with over 400,000 sales from its hardback, e-book, and audio copies.
Prince Harry’s Spare memoir covers the Duke’s “personal journey from trauma to healing”. There are chapters about his childhood, his time in the military and serving in Afghanistan, and his life as a husband and father.
Accidental sales in Spain meant that extracts from Spare were leaked ahead of the release date, with plenty of explosive revelations being shared.
The Guardian reported that Harry writes in the book that Prince William physically attacked him during an argument at Harry’s home in 2019, leaving the Duke with injuries to his back.
The publication reported that Harry wrote: “William called me another name, then came at me. It all happened so fast. So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor.”
William is said to have complained about Meghan, calling her “rude” and “abrasive”, to which Harry told William he was “parroting the press narrative.” and that Harry expected better.
The Guardian claims a leaked extract from the book details William physically attacked his brother during an argument
Another bombshell moment from leaked copies of the book revealed that Prince William and Princess Kate “howled” over Prince Harry’s Nazi uniform, which he wore to a costume party in 2005. According to Page Six, Harry refers to it as, “one of the biggest mistakes” of his life.
“I phoned Willy and Kate, asked what they thought. Nazi uniform, they said,” Harry writes. He added that when he tried it on for them, “They both howled. Worse than Willy’s leotard outfit! Way more ridiculous! Which, again, was the point.”
The Guardian article also recounted a moment from the book when Harry speaks about meeting with William and King Charles at Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021. According to the memoir, Charles stood between his sons “looking up at our flushed faces” and Harry quotes him as saying: “Please, boys. Don’t make my final years a misery.”
It’s not known whether Prince Harry gave his family a preview copy of Spare, but we doubt it. As copies have been leaked early, it’s possible that Charles has now read the book, if he’s keen to know how he’s portrayed in his youngest son’s memoir.
This is the exciting bit – Prince Harry has narrated SPARE himself. If there’s one book to kickstart your audible membership with, it’ll be this one, since audible members can download it free. It’s always fascinating to hear the author of their own memoir discuss their life in detail, though we’re not sure if we’re ready to listen to the chapter about his mother’s untimely death. We’ll have tissues at the ready for that part.
Prince Harry will did two interviews to promote the book. The first interview was with Anderson Cooper on the 60 Minutes show in the US. He discussed the target of press leaks after conversations with members of the royal family. He also answered the question about whether he’d ever return to a life of royal duty.
VIDEO: Prince Harry talks return to royal family with Anderson Cooper
The second interview was with ITV News Presenter Tom Bradby for a show called Harry: The Inteview which aired on Sunday, two days before the publication of his book. During the interview, filmed at his home in Montecito, California, there were revelations about his relationship with his father and with his brother, and how he wants a family, not an institution.
Prince Harry has had this label on his head for his entire life. ‘The heir and the spare’ or ‘the spare to the heir’ is a common way to refer to the monarch and their sibling. In the olden days when disease was rampant and death among children common, having multiple “spares” ensured the family’s line wouldn’t end.
Prince Harry with his older brother, the heir, Prince William
Hardcover UK Price: £14 / U.S. Price: $36.00
EBook UK Price £13.99 /U.S. Price: $17.99
Audio Download: Free with Audible.
This Morning reported that Prince Harry was paid £36 million for his book.
Prince Harry wishes to support British charities with donations from his proceeds from SPARE. The Duke of Sussex has donated $1,500,000 to Sentebale, an organisation he founded with Prince Seeiso in their mothers’ legacies, which supports vulnerable children and young people in Lesotho and Botswana affected by HIV/AIDS. Prince Harry will also donate to the non-profit organization WellChild in the amount of £300,000. WellChild, of which he has been Royal patron for 15 years, makes it possible for children and young people with complex health needs to be cared for at home instead of hospital, wherever possible.
Prince Harry chose JR Moehringer, who had written his own memoir before he started to write the lives of others. His book was called The Tender Bar, which is now a major movie starring Ben Affleck and George Clooney.
It’s an account of a clearly dysfunctional family. Moehringer’s mother had walked away from his violent father, when he was a baby, returning to live with her own parents. The young Moehringer yearns for his father, whom he knew only as ‘the Voice’ as a radio broadcaster.
In search of male role models, he leans on his uncle Charlie, who works as a bartender in a legendary Manhasset bar.
The New York Times describes Moehringer as “The best memoirist of his kind since Mary Karr wrote The Liars’ Club . . . hilarious stumblebum wisdom and born raconteur’s ease. Highly entertaining . . . constructed as skilfully as a drink mixed by the author’s Uncle Charlie.”
Was JR Moehringer chosen to write Prince Harry’s confessional because he seemed a kindred spirit?
Prince Harry’s close-up shot was phographed by Ramona Rosales, the same photographer Prince Harry’s wife Meghan Markle selected for some of her recent photoshoots.
A post shared by Ramona Rosales (@ramonarosales)
Megan Markle photographed by Ramona Rosales for Variety magazine
One fan of the photograph commented on the photographer’s Instagram photo, saying: “Such beautiful work! You have captured his image in a way that reveals the multifaceted/multidimensional parts of him, which often is flattened. In just one image, you’ve created a curiosity to read this book. I think it’s the emotion you’ve captured in the detail of his eyes. Again. Truly beautiful work.”
Prince Harry is wearing a casual look on the jacket cover, no smart suit in sight!
The page count is 416. If you’re a serious fan, binge reading/listening to SPARE in an afternoon is not out of the question!
There is a specially created website called princeharrymemoir.com. And there’s also a hashtag! #PrinceHarryMemoir. How very modern.
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