The Eloquent Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis : A Portrait in Her Own Words (With a One-Hour DVD Insert from A&E Biography)

Rating:
Summary: A charming book about a grand lady
Review: Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy was without a doubt one of America's most admired first ladies and that is the major theme of this book. Although the book - a collection of quotes taken from a variety of sources, mostly interviews given by Mrs. Kennedy - spans her lifetime, a good portion is devoted to Jackie's roles as the young wife of Senator John F. Kennedy and as the Nation's First Lady.
In order to fully appreciate some of the late Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis's comments about her roles as a woman/wife/mother and widow, it is important to bring up the historical context. The Kennedy Administration, "Camelot," took place amid turbulent times: widespread civil and racial unrest, the Cold War and the Cuban Missile Crisis, and escalating involvement in the Vietnamese conflict. The women's movement was then in its infancy and it is against this backdrop that the Kennedy's acquired mythical, almost magical qualities.
"Jack and Jackie were America's royal couple," writes Bill Adler in his introduction to The Eloquent Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis; A Portrait in Her Own Words. The quotes provide a window into her childhood, life with JFK and her role as First Lady, then widowhood, followed by her marriage to Aristotle Onassis, her work as book editor for both Viking Publishers and Doubleday, and final years. One section deals with the assassination, "Jack was the love of my life. No one will ever know a big part of me died with him."
A common thread that runs throughout is her great love of, and reliance on, the family. Jackie's life revolved around those she loved the most, her husband and her children, Caroline and John Jr. "Raising children is the best thing I've ever done," she declared.
For those of us who lived through the sixties and are old enough to remember where we were when we heard that the President of the United States had been mortally wounded by an assassin's bullet, this tiny giant of a book will help to fan the flames of remembrance by highlighting the "beauty, grace and intelligence Jacqueline Kennedy brought to the White House," the country, and the world.

Rating:
Summary: A charming book about a grand lady
Review: Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy was without a doubt one of America?s most admired first ladies and that is the major theme of this book. Although the book - a collection of quotes taken from a variety of sources, mostly interviews given by Mrs. Kennedy - spans her lifetime, a good portion is devoted to Jackie?s roles as the young wife of Senator John F. Kennedy and as the Nation?s First Lady.
In order to fully appreciate some of the late Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis?s comments about her roles as a woman/wife/mother and widow, it is important to bring up the historical context. The Kennedy Administration, ?Camelot,? took place amid turbulent times: widespread civil and racial unrest, the Cold War and the Cuban Missile Crisis, and escalating involvement in the Vietnamese conflict. The women?s movement was then in its infancy and it is against this backdrop that the Kennedy?s acquired mythical, almost magical qualities.
?Jack and Jackie were America?s royal couple,? writes Bill Adler in his introduction to The Eloquent Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis; A Portrait in Her Own Words. The quotes provide a window into her childhood, life with JFK and her role as First Lady, then widowhood, followed by her marriage to Aristotle Onassis, her work as book editor for both Viking Publishers and Doubleday, and final years. One section deals with the assassination, ?Jack was the love of my life. No one will ever know a big part of me died with him.?
A common thread that runs throughout is her great love of, and reliance on, the family. Jackie?s life revolved around those she loved the most, her husband and her children, Caroline and John Jr. ?Raising children is the best thing I?ve ever done,? she declared.
For those of us who lived through the sixties and are old enough to remember where we were when we heard that the President of the United States had been mortally wounded by an assassin?s bullet, this tiny giant of a book will help to fan the flames of remembrance by highlighting the ?beauty, grace and intelligence Jacqueline Kennedy brought to the White House,? the country, and the world.