Michiko Kakutani published a review in The New York Times in which she stated "For the most part, however, the White House portions of this book feel carefully prepared and vetted: Mrs. Bush lays out a predictable defense of her husband’s decision to invade Iraq and his decision not to visit New Orleans in the immediate aftermath of Katrina, and she offers only the blandest portraits of administration figures like Dick Cheney, Donald H. Rumsfeld and Karl Rove.

In these chapters there is no daylight between Laura Bush and her highly groomed role as first lady.."[3] Melissa Benn wrote a review in The Guardian and noted "Spoken from the Heart perfectly fits the personal-is-political template.

There is a lot of detail of designer dresses worn, official meals enjoyed, furniture and wallpaper restored, tours conducted and, of course, important political people encountered.

[2] Elaine Showalter published a review in The Daily Telegraph, in which she noted "this is a calculated and highly controlled autobiography, spoken from the heart, maybe, but more accurately titled “Written from the Head”.

"[1] Washington Post published a review by Ruth Marcus who wrote "Laura Bush's autobiography, "Spoken From the Heart," begins promisingly enough for anyone hoping to penetrate that [her] surface.