Rating: 4 out of 5
Many probably know some of ‘The King’s Speech’s story through the relatively recent film. I had seen the film a few times, and I thought that perhaps the book would fill in some details which were overlooked. I was not prepared to understand that most of the film was made up and that — as is typical — the real story is a whole lot more thrilling than what we were shown!
Starting from the fact that the pair — the King and his speech therapist — went through a far longer and more involved treatment than is portrayed to the very real friendship that developed between them, the film is overdramatized while missing out on the human connections. The book, au contraire, brings out the human element in both the royal family as well as on the other side. The moments in which Mr Logue’s contribution gets acknowledged — e.g., by Queens Elizabeth and Mary — are portrayed in the most emotional tones possible.
Overall, the general course of the 1920’s and ’30’s is drafted onto these pages, with the main emphasis on how the future King managed to get by. The short answer is that that took place with the help of one of his good friends; for the long one, read the book!
