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Monday, November 9, 2026Nov 9

‘Spare’ but not stingy: takeaways from Prince Harry’s memoir

Copies of the new book by Prince Harry called "Spare" are held by a member of staff of a book store during a midnight opening in London, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Prince Harry's memoir “Spare” arrives in bookstores on Tuesday, providing a varied portrait of the Duke of Sussex and the royal family. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
Copies of the new book by Prince Harry called "Spare" are held by a member of staff of a book store during a midnight opening in London, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Prince Harry's memoir “Spare” arrives in bookstores on Tuesday, providing a varied portrait of the Duke of Sussex and the royal family. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) Copies of the new book by Prince Harry called "Spare" are held by a member of staff of a book store during a midnight opening in London, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Prince Harry's memoir “Spare” arrives in bookstores on Tuesday, providing a varied portrait of the Duke of Sussex and the royal family. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

From the book’s opening citation of William Faulkner, to Prince Harry’s passionate bond with his wife Meghan, you could almost call the Duke of Sussex’s memoir “The Americanization of Prince Harry.”

Bereaved boy, troubled teen, wartime soldier, unhappy royal — many facets of Prince Harry are revealed in his explosive memoir, often in eyebrow-raising detail. Running throughout is Harry’s desire to be a different kind of prince — the kind who talks about his feelings, eats fast food and otherwise doesn’t hide beyond a prim facade.

Like an American.

From accounts of cocaine use and losing his virginity to raw family rifts, “Spare” exposes deeply personal details about Harry and the wider royal family. Even Americans may flinch when he confides that a trip to the North Pole left him with frostbitten genitals that proved most irritating during his brother’s wedding to Kate.

BROTHERHOOD