SPARE
COMING SOON IN PAPERBACK
OCTOBER 22, 2024
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
An unforgettable story of love, loss, courage, and healing
It was 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 Princess Diana was laid to rest, billions wondered what Prince William and Prince Harry must be thinking and feeling—and how their lives would play out from that point on.
For Harry, this is that story at last.
Before losing his mother, twelve-year-old Prince Harry was known as the carefree one, the happy-go-lucky Spare to the more serious Heir. Grief changed everything. He struggled at school, struggled with anger, with loneliness—and, because he blamed the press for his mother’s death, he struggled to accept life in the spotlight.
At twenty-one, he joined the British Army. The discipline gave him structure, and two combat tours made him a hero at home. But he soon felt more lost than ever, suffering from post-traumatic stress and prone to crippling panic attacks.
Above all, he couldn’t find true love.
Then he met Meghan. The world was swept away by the couple’s cinematic romance and rejoiced in their fairy-tale wedding. But from the beginning, Harry and Meghan were preyed upon by the press, subjected to waves of abuse, racism, and lies. Watching his wife suffer, their safety and mental health at risk, Harry saw no other way to prevent the tragedy of history repeating itself but to flee his mother country. Over the centuries, leaving the Royal Family was an act few had dared. The last to try, in fact, had been his mother. . . .
For the first time, Prince Harry tells his own story, chronicling his journey with raw, unflinching honesty. A landmark publication, Spare is full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.
Praise
“Frank and funny.” —The New York Times
“Unflinching.” —Los Angeles Times
“Scorching . . . Gripping . . . A superb historical document.” —The Atlantic
Read an Excerpt
I looked around, saw no one.
I checked my phone. No texts, no voicemails.
They must be running late, I thought, leaning against the stone wall.
I put away my phone and told myself: Stay calm.
The weather was quintessentially April. Not quite winter, not yet spring. The trees were bare, but the air was soft. The sky was gray, but the tulips were popping. The light was pale, but the indigo lake, threading through the gardens, glowed.
How beautiful it all is, I thought. And also how sad.
Once upon a time, this was going to be my forever home. Instead it had proved to be just another brief stop.
When my wife and I fled this place, in fear for our sanity and physical safety, I wasn’t sure when I’d ever come back. That was January 2020. Now, fifteen months later, here I was, days after waking to thirty-two missed calls and then one short, heart-racing talk with Granny: Harry . . . Grandpa’s gone.
The wind picked up, turned colder. I hunched my shoulders, rubbed my arms, regretted the thinness of my white...
About the Author
Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex is a husband, father, humanitarian, military veteran, mental wellness advocate, environmentalist, and bestselling author. He resides in Santa Barbara, California, with his family and three dogs. His memoir, Spare, was published on January 10th, 2023 and is the fastest selling nonfiction book of all time.
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 organization 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, which he has been Royal patron of for fifteen years, makes it possible for children and young people with complex health needs to be cared for at home instead of hospital, wherever possible.
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English-language editions of Spare will be published in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, and South Africa by Transworld, an imprint of Penguin Random House UK, and in Canada by Random House Canada.
The book will also be published in translation in 15 additional languages, including: SPANISH Plaza & Janés/Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial, GERMAN Penguin Verlag/Penguin Random House Verlagsgruppe GmbH, PORTUGUESE BRAZIL Objetiva/Grupo Companhia das Letras, PORTUGUESE PORTUGAL Objectiva/Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial, SIMPLIFIED CHINESE Penguin Random House China, DANISH Politikens Forlag, DUTCH Hollands Diep, an imprint of Overamstel, FINNISH Otava Publishing Company Ltd., FRENCH Éditions Fayard, GREEK Pedio Books, HUNGARIAN Corvina Kiadó, ITALIAN Mondadori, POLISH Wydawnictwo Marginesy, ROMANIAN Nemira Publishing House, and SWEDISH Albert Bonniers Förlag.