Janice R. Andrews
In a startling turn of events, King Frederik X published an unexpected book that is quickly shooting to the top of bestseller lists, just three days after taking the throne in Denmark.
The book, titled “The King’s Word,” took Danes by surprise and quickly led to live-blogging of significant passages by national media. The book has become a sensation, promising insights into Denmark’s position in the world and his relationship with Queen Mary.
After his mother Margrethe II abdicated on New Year’s Eve, Frederik was crowned on Sunday, which created the conditions for this unexpected literary debut. According to reports, “The King’s Word” has already surpassed the bestseller from the previous year at the well-known online book retailer Saxo. In the immediate wake of the news, a Saxo spokesman claimed that the book was selling at an astounding rate of 25 copies per minute.
Costing up to 250 Danish Kroner (£29; €33.50) for its roughly 110 pages, Jens Andersen, who wrote Frederik’s 2017 biography, co-wrote the book. Utilising interviews that have been conducted in the last nine months, the book explores hitherto unanticipated insights into the king’s life.
In a moving passage, Frederik talks candidly about his early difficulties embracing his destiny as Denmark’s King, saying, “I just wanted to be like all the other boys of my age.” In retrospect, he talks about how his eighteenth birthday felt like “the end of the world,” but it wasn’t.
The king’s beliefs and family dynamics are among the private topics the book discusses. Frederik reveals that he and Queen Mary pray with their kids every night. Frederik, looking back on his late father, Prince Henrik of Denmark, observes that he took valuable lessons from a “very patriarchal” father and tried to instill that pattern in his two sons.
Regarding gender relations in his own home, Frederik recognises Queen Mary’s influence, saying, “I have learned a lot from having a wife who, from time to time, reminds me that of course I am not always right, and that my words are not automatically believed, just because I am a man in the house.”
Amidst the estimated 300,000 spectators who witnessed his coronation at Copenhagen’s Christiansborg Castle, King Frederik X poignantly expressed his desire to serve as a “unifying king” for the future of his country. This unexpected literary foray is turning out to be a fascinating development in the reign of Denmark’s new king.
