Written after the film of the same name by Lionel Logue's grandson. Not the best ever but I learned a few things. ( )

Excellent personal account from the grandson of who we would title today Speech Therapist Mark Logue. As the book continues the friendship grows until Logue and his wife become like family to King George VI. The last sentence of the book hypothesizes that besides the teaching of how to breathe properly via the diaphragm, it was the relationship that started therapist-patient and ended up as father-son that cured the King. Interesting. ( )

You read this book for the story. The style is nothing really special and the author, as you can see, is somewhat biased in favor of his subject (this tends to be more evident at the end when he emphasizes that, though the King is doing well, he still desperately needs Logue. A wise teacher knows when to step back). It actually showcases some of the time-crunching that happens in the Oscar-winning film and some of the stuff that the film seems to have left out (like multiple references to a higher being). But the story is a great story... of responsibility, of work, and self-discipline.

Also, to the person on someone's staff that insisted on leaving the f-word in the film, it's not mentioned here either. Just in case you cared. Which I kinda do, in a worn out sort of way. And the tag line for the books was rather, well, snarky and slightly unpatriotic(assuming, that is, that Logue still lives in Britain). ( )

3.5 stars

Mark Logue is the grandson of Lionel Logue, who left Australia with his wife to move to England in the early 20th century. This was after he’d started helping people with their public speaking. When he arrived in England, he continued his business there, and ended up with the future King of England as one of the people he was helping.

“Bertie” had a stutter and was terrified of public speaking (not so good when you are royalty!). Initially, he was not meant to become king, but when his older brother abdicated, Bertie (now King George VI) was next in line. Lionel was a lifeline for the king, as Lionel helped Bertie before every speech he had to make for a very long time. They became friends, as much as the king and a commoner could.

This was good. I have seen the movie, but I don’t think much time was spent on Lionel’s life. The book actually did spend more time on Lionel than the movie did. In addition to Bertie/King George’s life. Mark used many letters between the two men to write this biography.

There was a section in the middle, describing events during WWII that I lost a bit of interest in, but I quite enjoyed it before and after (and it wasn’t all the events of the war where I lost interest, so it may just have been that I was tired when I read that part!). We also get small glimpses into (now) Queen Elizabeth’s young life, as well. The book also follows both men to their deaths – though Logue was 15 years King George’s senior, Logue outlasted the king, but not by very long. ( )

This book and the movie are not based on each other. The difference is one of emphasis: the book looks at the life of Lionel Logue, speech therapist to King George VI, while the movies focuses on the relationship between Mr. Logue and his most famous client. They book also provides an interesting look into the early days of speech therapy. They make nice companion pieces. As I neared the end of the book, I became dissatisfied with the focus on the King's speech and speeches. The broader context of what the king had to contend with was far more interesting. This suggests to me that the book may have been a bit long for its scope....maybe? ( )