Meghan Markle’s book hits top of children’s book chart despite being panned by critics

‘One wonders how any publisher could have thought fit to publish this grammar-defying set of badly rhyming cod homilies,’ one reviewer wrote

Meghan Markle’s new children’s picture book, The Bench, reached the top of some children’s book charts despite being roasted by reviewers as it was released.

The Bench is Meghan’s first book and was inspired by a father’s day poem she wrote for Prince Harry the month after their first child Archie was born. He recently turned two years old. The second child of Meghan and Prince Harry, Lilibet Diana, was born on Friday.

The book examines the “special bond between father and son as seen through a mother’s eyes”.

Claire Allfree of The Daily Telegraph wrote that the book was “semi-literate”.

“One wonders how any publisher could have thought fit to publish this grammar-defying set of badly rhyming cod homilies, let alone think any child anywhere would want to read it. But that’s planet Sussex for you, where even the business of raising a family is all about the brand,” she added.

Alex Connell of The Times in the UK called the story a “self-help manual for needy parents” and added that “the story [is] so lacking in action and jeopardy you half wonder if the writing job was delegated to a piece of furniture”.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the book had a rating of 4.1 stars out of five with 53 reviews on Amazon, placing on spot 100 over bestselling books on the site.

The book reached the top spot on Amazon’s list of bestselling “children’s black & African American story books” and was on spot 41 on the list of children’s books overall.

“My hope is that The Bench resonates with every family, no matter the makeup, as much as it does with mine,” Meghan said in a statement as the book was announced in May.

Some criticised Meghan after the announcement amid the estrangement between her and her own father, former lighting director Thomas Markle.

“I don’t know how you can write about a boy, a son or a father when you haven’t spoken to your own father for years,” royal commentator Angela Levin told The Sun in May.

Mr Markle was at the centre of a staged photo scandal leading up to the 2018 wedding between Meghan and Prince Harry.

Prince Harry has also had problems in his relationship with his father, Prince Charles. Harry and Meghan left their royal duties last year.

They are currently living in a $14m home in Montecito, California.