The King's Speech: How One Man Saved the British Monarchy

Title: The King's Speech: How One Man Saved the British Monarchy 
Author: Mark Louge and Peter Conradi
Publisher: Sterling Publishing
Pages: 256
ISBN: 978-1-4027-8676-1

I need to start off with the books description before I jump into this discussion...So, from the back cover:

Based on the recently discovered diaries of Lionel Logue, The King's Speech: How One Man Saved the British Monarchy recounts an inspiring real-life tale of triumph over adversity, when and Australian taught a British king with a crippling speech defect how to speak to his subjects.

At the urging of his wife Elizabeth, the Duke of York (known to the royal family as "Bertie") began to see speech therapist Lionel Logue in a desperate bid to cure his lifelong stammer. Little did the two men know that this unlikely friendship, between a future monarch and a commoner born in Australia, would ultimately save the House of Windsor from collapse. Through intense locution and breathing lessons, the amiable Logue gave te shy young Duke the skills and the confidence to stand and deliver before a crowd. And when his elder brother, Edward VIII, abdicated the throne to marry for love, Bertie was able to assume the reins of power as King George VI--just in time to help steer the nation through the dark waters of the Second World War.

I will start by saying, I loved...loved the movie The King's Speech. It's a favorite in my house. My daughter asks to watch (granted it's muted during a couple of parts). When I found out this book was available, I got it. I was interested to learn more about the lives of these men.

We start from the beginning of both of their lives. We follow Lionel Logue through his childhood and into adulthood in Australia. From his marriage and the start of his family to the travels he and his wife did to learn more on speech. Then his travels to England when he and his family migrated. We also see how The Duke of York was raised and the hard time he had to go through growing up. To see how he and his brother were treated as children is heartbreaking. Then we see how the Duke grows and starts his career in the military and to his marriage to Elizabeth, who will be queen and queen mother.

The relationships showed in this story are so strong and respectful...not just the friendship between the King and Lionel, but also with the King and Queen's relationship and Lionel and Myrtle's. The support in each of these two marriages is something to strive for.

I really enjoyed this book. The journal writings were so interesting to read through out the text of the book. Lionel Logue had such respect for the King and the monarchy. The King's respect and gratitude in the letters were so sincere, it was a heartwarming friendship. The pictures that are also in the book, in two different sections, are a lot of fun to look at. The writing of the book wasn't weighted down. The story flowed smoothly, it was hard to put down. After reading this, I would like to learn more about this time in out history. Too read!