{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"BookDragon","provider_url":"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/bookdragon","author_name":"Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center","author_url":"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/bookdragon\/author\/riemert\/","title":"The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett [in Christian Science Monitor] - BookDragon","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"qK0ThJbrbo\"><a href=\"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/bookdragon\/uncommon-reader-by-alan-bennett\/\">The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett [in Christian Science Monitor]<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/bookdragon\/uncommon-reader-by-alan-bennett\/embed\/#?secret=qK0ThJbrbo\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett [in Christian Science Monitor]&#8221; &#8212; BookDragon\" data-secret=\"qK0ThJbrbo\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/* <![CDATA[ *\/\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/* ]]> *\/\n<\/script>\n","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/bookdragon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2007\/09\/Uncommon-Reader.jpg","thumbnail_width":948,"thumbnail_height":1422,"description":"\"Yes. That is exactly what it is. A book is a device to ignite the imagination,'\" says the fictional Queen Elizabeth II when her footman informs her that her reading choice might have been an explosive device. Indeed, in Alan Bennett's The Uncommon Reader, books prove to be the people's enemy as the queen becomes so absorbed between the pages that she eschews her royal duties.  It all begins when the royal canines inadvertently lead the monarch to the \"City of Westminster travelling library, a large removal-like van parked next to the bins outside one of the kitchen doors.\" In her first meaningful literary foray, the queen will unknowingly choose her first title from a stack of literal discards.  Apparently the library's only regular borrower is Norman, a young kitchen worker with a penchant for old musicals. Norman and the van are back the next week when the curious queen returns for a new title. By the following week, Norman has moved from washing dishes to tending the royal library \u2013 and becomes the queen's de facto book supplier. ...[click here for more]  Review: Christian Science Monitor, September 11, 2007  Readers: Young Adult, Adult  Published: 2007"}