Prince Harry is following in his wife’s footsteps and adding ‘author’ to his growing list of post-royal job descriptions. But unlike Meghan Markle, the Duke of Sussex’s book won’t be a made-up story for children, it’ll be a memoir spanning his entire life, from his unique experience of growing up in the British royal family, to leaving the UK—and Buckingham Palace—behind for sunny L.A.
The unexpected news was announced in a statement yesterday, which explained Prince Harry’s memoir would detail the “definitive account of the experiences, adventures, losses, and life lessons that have helped shape him.” It also revealed the Prince has been working on the project in secret for almost a year and that the book, which will be published by Penguin Random House, is set for a late 2022 release. Proceeds from book sales will be donated to charity.
Following the announcement, many speculated about how Harry’s family, including his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, his father, Prince Charles, and his brother, Prince William, would feel about the memoir’s release, given how apolitical and silent the royal family has typically been in the past about life inside the palace walls.
According to sources, the royals were given a head’s up about the project before the public statement, but they were only alerted to it by Harry “very recently.” Similar to when he and Markle did an interview with Oprah Winfrey recently, the Duke doesn’t need permission from the family to go ahead with the book.
The memoir will reportedly cover everything that has impacted Prince Harry’s life and will be a definitive account of the experiences, adventures, losses and life lessons that have helped shape him. This will include being in the public eye, his dedication to service, his time in the military in Afghanistan, and his recent roles as husband to Meghan Marke father to Archie and Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor. It will likely also detail the immense grief and heartbreak he suffered as a 12-year-old boy when his mother, Princess Diana, died.
“I’m writing this not as the prince I was born but as the man I have become,” Harry wrote in a statement. “I’ve worn many hats over the years, both literally and figuratively, and my hope is that in telling my story—the highs and lows, the mistakes, the lessons learned—I can help show that no matter where we come from, we have more in common than we think. I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to share what I’ve learned over the course of my life so far and excited for people to read a firsthand account of my life that’s accurate and wholly truthful.”
The publishers added: “In an intimate and heartfelt memoir from one of the most fascinating and influential global figures of our time, Prince Harry will share, for the very first time, the definitive account of the experiences, adventures, losses and life lessons that have helped shape him.”
“Covering his lifetime in the public eye from childhood to the present day, including his dedication to service, the military duty that twice took him to the frontlines of Afghanistan, and the joy he has found in being a husband and father, Prince Harry will offer an honest and captivating personal portrait, one that shows readers that behind everything they think they know lies an inspiring, courageous, and uplifting human story.”
