Eighth-Grade Meghan Markle Wrote a Children’s Book About Having Freckles—& We've Got an Excerpt

Published Jun 23, 2021

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3:22pm

You’ve probably heard by now that Meghan Markle is a bestselling author. Shortly after publishing her children’s book, The Bench, the story has become a #1 New York Times Bestseller.

Last week, the duke and duchess revealed the news on their Archewell website, writing, “Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex’s debut children’s book, The Bench, is #1 on The New York Times Bestseller list for children’s picture books after being released just last week. Congratulations to everyone involved in the project.”

However, we just learned that this wasn’t the 39-year-old’s first-ever shot at writing a book. In fact, back in eighth grade, Markle wrote a sweet story about embracing her freckles in a piece called A Face without Freckles... Is a Night Without Stars. So, where is the book now? It apparently resides in the Library of Congress, according to librarian Carla Hayden.

On Tuesday, Hayden shared details of the volume on Twitter. “Did you know Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, wrote a book in 8th grade titled, A Face Without Freckles… Is a Night Without Stars. She extols the wonder of freckles with drawings and verse. Meghan submitted it to the @CopyrightOffice in 1996. From @librarycongress collection,” Hayden wrote on social media alongside three photos of the book.

One of the snaps features a drawing of a girl (a self-portrait maybe?) and a small excerpt. It reads, “Some people think freckles are strange, While I happen to disagree, Because if I didn't have my freckles, Then I would not truly be me!!!” In addition, another image shows the small author bio featured in the story.

“Meghan Markle currently attends Immaculate Heart High School in Los Angeles, California and enjoys watching television, spending time with her friends, and participating in musical comedies," the section reads. “Meghan wrote this book in the eighth grade as a school project, and now wishes to continue writing throughout high school.”

We think we might have another #1 bestseller on our hands.

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