The Bench Actually Wasn't Meghan Markle's First Book
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Meghan Markle's new children's book "The Bench" is a New York Times bestseller, according to her and Prince Harry's Archewell website. But according to new reports, "The Bench" is not Meghan's first book!
"The Bench" is about the connection between fathers and sons. In fact, "The Bench" was originally based on a Father's Day poem Meghan wrote for Harry after their son Archie was born. Meghan then expanded the poem into a children's picture book. In a statement on the Archewell website, the Duchess of Sussex said, "While this poem began as a love letter to my husband and son, I'm encouraged to see that its universal themes of love, representation and inclusivity are resonating with communities everywhere."
Reviews of the book have been mixed. The New York Times' review said the book's message was "heartfelt," but a "heavier editing hand would have been a big help." So naturally, "The Bench" gave the British tabloids another opportunity to criticize Meghan, and reviews on the other side have the pond have been negative.
But the best-selling children's book was not the first for Meghan. Keep scrolling to learn about Meghan's first book.
Meghan Markle wrote a book as a teenager
The Daily Mail reported that Meghan Markle's first children's book was not "The Bench," but one she wrote as a teen. In fact, the Duchess of Sussex wrote her first children's book, "A Face without Freckles Is A Night Without Stars," when she was in eighth grade. A few years later, Meghan showed "business smarts," per the outlet, because she submitted the book to the U.S. Copyright Office when she was just 15. It's not a surprise that Meghan was a go-getter at a young age.
Per Inside Edition, when Meghan was 11, her writing impacted one of the largest public companies in the United States. Tween Meghan took on Procter & Gamble, the manufacturer of Ivory Soap, after seeing a TV commercial she thought was sexist. The commercial for Ivory dishwasher soap claimed: "Women all over America are fighting greasy pots and pans."
Young Meghan didn't like the TV commercial, so she decided to do something about the ad and wrote to Procter and Gamble. She also wrote to civil rights lawyer Gloria Allred, then-first lady Hillary Clinton, and Nick News anchor Linda Ellerbee.
After receiving the letter, Ellerbee sent a Nick News crew to interview Meghan (watch the interview here), and her letter made headlines. "I don't think it is right for kids to grow up thinking that mom does everything," Meghan noted at the time. As a result, the commercial was changed to say "people" and not "women."