BookSneeze Review - The King and Dr. Nick, by George Nichopoulos

BookSneeze  Book Review

The King and Dr. Nick: What Really Happened to Elvis and Me, by Dr. Goerge Nichopoulos

(This book was provided for free by Thomas Nelson). When I chose this book from the website as an afterthought, my expectations were really low. I figured that everyone already knew how Elvis died, and this book was just going to be some rambling by his doctor about what Elvis was like when he was off-stage. As it turned out, though there were anecdotes about Elvis and his personal life, far more of the book was devoted to the medical events leading up to his death and the subsequent controversy over the cause of his death. I didn't even know there WAS a controversy about Elvis' death, but apparently there was a lot of it and the media only played up the parts that it wanted to (those, of course, are the parts I thought I knew).

When reading this book, it is impossible not to draw comparisons between the life and death of Elvis (the king of rock and roll) and Michael Jackson (the king of pop). The intense performances, prior medical conditions the public was unaware of, the unexpected death immediately prior to a major tour, and then the persecution of the doctor after the death. (I was reading this book as plans were being made for Michael Jackson's doctor to turn himself into the police). In fact, this book was published shortly after Micheal died, and there is a brief afterward by the author about the similarities between both artists and the aftermath of their deaths. It was a fascinating book simply because it made me realize how much of what I thought I knew was entirely wrong. The author presents his story very honestly; he admits to any faults he has or wrong-doings he is guilty of, but he also presents the side of the story that the media never did, and he manages to do so without overly placing blame or being accusatory. I was very pleasantly surprised by this book and think that it's message is particularly relevant as Micheal's doctor goes to trial. It was a great read.