"This first major biography of Mackenzie King in 30 years is a guide to the deep and often moving inner conflicts that haunted Mackenzie King. With animated prose and a subtle wit,
Allan Levine draws a multidimensional portrait of this most compelling of politicians." (
Canada's History 20120101)
"King fairly trips along, serving up great dollops from King's legendary diary to explain the lonely Victorian romantic behind the politics...Levine is a careful historian, and his judgments usually reflect the detailed work of earlier, more expert scholars, whom he credits generously in his text...Moreover, Levine's text is accessible and readable..." (Greg Donaghy
Humanities and Social Sciences Net 20120501)
"
Allan Levine's
King: William Lyon MacKenzie King is more a biography of King the man than King the politician...Levineís biography of King is very much worth reading. Levine is skilled with his prose and entertaining in his conclusions." (Craig Westcott
The Business Post 20120523)
"If the world needed evidence to disprove the notion we need to know as much as possible about our political leaders, it's between the covers of
Allan Levine's new biography of William Lyon Mackenzie King...
William Lyon Mackenzie King: A Life Guided by the Hand of Destiny must therefore be treated as a skillful introduction to one of the most important and perplexing personalities to hold the highest political post in Canada." (Kelly McParland
National Post 20110930)
"
Allan Levine gave himself the mission of turning this dull but eccentric Canadian into a subject worthy of contemporary discussion. He succeeds, bringing to life the inner thoughts of his subject as best anyone can." (Donald Benham
Winnipeg Free Press 20111001)
"
Allan Levine had no shortage of peculiar personal details to make use of in his biography of Canada's longest serving P.M." (
Quill & Quire 20110901)
"If anyone doubted that King spent a lot of time in la-la land, they need only read Mr. Levine's intriguing account, one that fleshes out new material from his voluminous diaries."
(
Globe & Mail 20111107)
"...until now no one has ever done as magisterial a job as Levine in fusing King's many parts into a complex but comprehensible whole..."
(
Maclean's Magazine 20111128)
"...his book is perceptive and eminently readable.
Levine's discussion of King's personality is excellent...(
Levine) has ably shown that King was important and remarkable." (
Literary Review of Canada 20111201)
"...This is an informative, authoritative study that's also entertaining and even witty...The book has some delightfully waspish comments from
Levine...This is a worthy biography of an important individual. If he could, I'm sure William Lyon Mackenzie King would read and enjoy it, in Levine's phrase, with 'as much humility as he was capable of showing.'" (
Uptown Magazine 20120322)
"In this endeavour, Levine has succeeded masterfully...By examining King's personality and politics as two sides of the same coin, Levine has produced a wonderfully comprehensive portrait of this intensely disagreeable -- yet critically important -- Canadian."
(
Quill & Quire 20111201)
"Here we have
Allan Levine, one of the aces of Canadian historical chronicles, channelling Mackenzie King. And what a story they have to tell: our longest-serving prime minister, getting advice from his dog and having two-way conversations with his long-dead mother. If Canadian history was ever dull, it isn't now. Get this book." (Peter C. Newman 20110627)
"In
King,
Allan Levine gives us a readable, comprehensive account of a prime minister we ought to know about. He also reminds us that, in ever-changing ways, King haunts us still." (Allan Levine
Globe & Mail 20120214)
"...an outstanding biography of Canada's longest-reigning prime minister." (Marian Scott
Montreal Gazette 20120120)
