The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyŏng: The Autobiographical Writings of a Crown Princess of Eighteenth-Century Korea by Lady HyegyeongMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
It's interesting how she, as the wife of a prince and mother of the king, hoped future generations of her family would not serve in court, since she saw it as fraught with trouble and badmouthing and backstabbing, and would rather they just live and work away from the royal palace.
Also, understanding these are personal memoirs, and that, as a woman, she was kept apart from the governing issues of the royal family, it still struck me how her whole life revolved around palace intrigue and politics. She claims multiple times that no one suffers as she does, not really taking into account everything going on outside the palace walls.
Regardless, an interesting read. The last book is definitely the most interesting, since it tells the story of Prince Sado's descent into madness and imprisonment in the rice chest. I'm guessing he was a paranoid-schizophrenic, although I'm not sure. Wikipedia didn't help much.
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